The Mortal Instruments (ON HIATUS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE)
by Heartless-x-Love
Summary: Estelle Garroway is Clary Fray's other best friend and is staying with Clary for the weekend. Things start to turn bad after a visit to the Pandemonium Club, when Clary begins seeing things and Stella realises they are in for the ride of their lives. M for possible language.
1. Pandemonium Club

**Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones **

Heartless-x-Love: Estelle Garroway is Clary Fray's other best friend and is staying with Clary for the weekend. Things start to turn bad after a visit to the Pandemonium Club, when Clary begins seeing things. Clary's decision may cost her the life of the ones she holds most dear.

-x-

**PANDEMONIUM CLUB  
**

_"__Is this a good idea? I barely know her" Lucian ran a hand through his hair and looked at the small child in his friend's arms._

_"__Please take her, we don't have much time until Valentine finds us" Fiona pleaded as heavy steps sounded in the hallway._

_"__Please! She'll be safer with you" Mark said as he braced himself against the door._

_Fiona kissed her daughter on the top of the head and placed her into Lucian's arms._

_"__Fiona, I-" Lucian looked helplessly at his friends and suddenly the door flew inwards, knocking Mark to the ground._

_"__Go!" Fiona yelled taking out her sword._

_Lucian nodded and headed out the door on the other side of the room. He looked back and saw Fiona and Mark struggling with Valentine's goons. _

_Swallowing the lump in his throat, Lucian ran out into the night and disappeared into the fog._

_..._

**LUKE**

"Stella, come on" I called up the stairs to the second floor of my house.

Jocelyn had given her permission for Estelle to spend the weekend with her and Clary and the girls were very excited; Estelle in particular. She'd come home from school the day before the holidays started complaining about a boy she'd said was following her and it was stressing her out. I had called the school and complained but they said they had no idea who I was talking about, and that she must be trying to get attention. I'd sworn down the phone and pressed the hang up button so hard the screen cracked.

"Stella!" I called up the stairs again and this time heard footsteps rushing around.

I smiled to myself and headed upstairs to see what had taken her so long.

When I reached the landing, I saw that Estelle's door was ajar and a wailing melody was streaming out. I leant against the door frame and peeked into the room.

Stella was hurrying back and forth throwing random clothes into a bag and muttering to herself.

...

**STELLA**

"No-one else could see him, but I can" I mumbled, rushing around the room.

The song I was listening to finished so I moved to the CD player and rummaged around in a box for something else to listen to. I closed my hand on an old My Chemical Romance CD and smiled at it. I removed the Florence &amp; The Machine CD and placed the new one in its place. I started singing along and continued to pack my bag. I danced around with my eyes closed and lost myself in the music.

"Packed yet?"

My eyes flew open and I clutched a hand to my chest. Standing in the doorway was my dad, and he had an amused look on his face.

"Dad! warn me next time" I pouted.

...

**LUKE**

"Well I called you twice" I stepped into the room and my eyes zeroed in on a picture hanging on the wall.

I walked up to it and looked closer. It was a drawing of a boy dressed in black clothes. He had weapons strapped to his back and my stomach dropped when I saw symbols peeking out from under the boy's shirt.

"Who is this?" I asked pointing at the picture.

"That's the guy that was following me at school" Stella replied hugging herself "I've never seen him before but the symbols seem familiar".

"Familiar? You mean you've seen them before?" I asked turning around.

Stella made a face and scratched her head.

"Well I kind of remember seeing them when I was really little" she nodded "I think my birth parents were covered in them". She looked up and registered my expression. "I won't draw him or them again if it's upsetting" Stella rushed over and wrapped her arms around me. "Seriously though, do you know what the symbols are?"

I patted her on the head "yes I know what they are". I pulled out of her arms and sat down on her bed. "I think it's time you knew the truth about your parents" I patted the bed beside me and Stella sat down with an apprehensive look on her face.

"Your mum and dad were people known as Shadowhunters; people who hunted demons" I said watching her face for her reaction.

"Demons aren't real Dad" Stella replied with a small laugh.

"Yes they are!" I countered and rolled up my sleeve. There were faint, but still visible, lines on the skin of my forearm. "These are the same symbols that you drew on the picture and the same symbols that your mum and dad had".

"What are they?" Stella asked running her fingers over the lines.

I took a deep breath and sighed.

"They are called runes, and they help Shadowhunters increase their power" I replied rolling my sleeve down. "They can also heal wounds and allow Shadowhunters to become invisible". I looked at the carpet and back up at Stella "your mum and dad were two of my best friends along with a man called Valentine and Clary's mum".

"Aunty Joss?!" Stella exclaimed "does Clary know about that?"

I shook my head "no, and she doesn't need to know okay, so don't tell her".

...

**STELLA**

I nodded and looked up at the cat-clock on the wall "crap look at the time, Clary's gonna be wondering where I am".

I stood up and picked up my bag. I turned around and saw Dad had a pained look on his face.

"Dad? what's wrong?" I asked grabbing hold of his hand.

"Do you want to know the reason why your parents died?"

"I guess so" I replied.

"Valentine thought they knew where the Mortal Cup was hidden and kept demanding they give it to him. He didn't believe that they had no idea where it was, so he sent his henchmen after them and they…they held him off for as long as they could but they weren't strong enough".

I blinked away the tears that were forming in my eyes "r-really?"

"Yes, your mum gave you over to my care just before they died. At first I wasn't sure if she'd made the right decision considering my _condition_, but the fact you needed me gave me a reason to try my hardest".

I brought a hand up to my face and wiped my eyes properly "she must have loved you heaps to give away her baby".

Dad nodded and stood up and wiped his eyes "we should get going; Jocelyn is probably waiting for the canvas she asked me to get for her".

"Okay" I replied adjusting the bag on my shoulder.

I followed Dad down the stairs and through the bookstore, and then waited on the curb outside as he locked the door. Once we were inside the truck a thought suddenly struck me.

"Dad, what is the Mortal Cup?" I asked as we started down the street.

...

**LUKE**

"The Mortal Cup is a magical object" I replied as I turned the corner "it can create a Shadowhunter from regular person, also known as a Mundane".

"Am I a Mundane?" Stella asked.

I laughed "no, you were born to two Shadowhunters, so that means you have the ability to become a Shadowhunter if you were trained to be".

Stella was quiet for a while as she digested that information but she soon had another question.

"Dad, how would I train to be a Shadowhunter? Is there a special school or something?"

"You could say that. There's a place in the centre of the city called the Institute; I'll show on the way" I replied turning onto the street that went past the building in question.

I parked next to the building and left the motor running. I pointed up at the building "what do you see on the other side of the gate?"

"Wow! This place looks amazing, but I don't understand how everyone walking past doesn't seem to notice" Stella replied twisting around in her seat.

"That's because everyone out there is a Mundane, they don't have the same abilities as you and me" I said pulling back out into the traffic.

"How would I learn to be a Shadowhunter?" Stella asked as we drove down the road.

"All you'd have to do would be to simply state who your birth parents were and ask to join the Clave" I replied tapping my fingers on the steering wheel as I waited for the lights to change.

...

**STELLA**

I chewed the inside of my cheek for a minute as I thought about what Dad had just told me.

"So all I'd have to tell them is my parents were Mark and Fiona Roseivy and that I want to be a Shadowhunter?" I looked up at Dad and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, they may send you to the Silent Brothers to confirm your identity and hopefully being raised by a werewolf wouldn't screw up your chances".

"Why would your condition have anything to do with it?" I asked confused.

"Even though I was a Shadowhunter and a member of the Clave, the fact that I became a werewolf got me thrown out and into the world of the Downworlders".

"Downworlders?"

"That's what the Clave call werewolves, vampires and warlocks. It's not recommended for Shadowhunters to have much to do with Downworlders".

"Oh" I didn't like the thought of becoming this awesome demon-hunting badass if I could no longer see my dad.

...

**LUKE**

"We're here, so you wanna come back to earth now?" I said as I pulled up on the curb outside the Fray residence.

"What?" Stella lost the vacant look on her face and opened her door.

I was surprised at how well she was taking this monumental revelation about her birth parents. Then again, she knew I was a werewolf and that didn't bother her one bit, so I shouldn't have been surprised.

"Hey, Aunty Joss!" Stella called as the front door of the apartment block was opened.

"Hey yourself, how are you?" Jocelyn said coming down the steps to the sidewalk.

"I'm good thanks, is Clary in her room?" Stella hoisted her bag higher on her shoulder.

"Yes, I think she's on the phone to Simon about his friend's poetry reading tonight" Jocelyn replied.

"Thanks; see you later Dad" Stella wrapped her arms around me and headed inside.

"You still haven't snapped her out that habit Luke" Jocelyn said moving closer to my truck.

"Believe me, I've tried" I picked up the canvas from the back of the truck "here's the canvas you wanted; I found a few other things as well".

After placing the canvas on the ground, I pulled down a couple of bags full of odds and ends that I thought Jocelyn would be able to use.

"Thank you" Jocelyn said picking up the canvas "could you bring those bags up?"

I nodded and followed Jocelyn up the stairs to her apartment. I put the bags down on the kitchen counter and could hear Clary and Stella talking loudly in Clary's room.

"Look at this" Jocelyn said suddenly tearing a page off the notepad on the counter.

I looked at the piece of paper in her hand and saw the rune scribbled there.

"It's started again" Jocelyn said scrunching the paper into a ball "what should I do? Do I take her to Magnus or tell her?"

"That's not my call to make" I replied as the sound of talking moved towards the door. I looked at Jocelyn and back at the door "you do what you think is right, like you've always done".

...

**STELLA**

"So has the poetry got any better since last time?" I asked Clary as we emerged in the kitchen.

"Simon seems to think so, hey Luke" Clary said when she spotted the other person in the room.

"Hey Clary".

"We're gonna go now" Clary told Jocelyn as she picked up her keys "we'll see you later".

"See you Monday, Dad" I said wrapping my arms around his waist.

"You have fun now, and be careful coming home you hear".

"We will, don't worry" I kissed Dad on the cheek and followed Clary out the door.

"What to do you say to going to that awesome nightclub to celebrate your birthday?" I asked my friend as we walked down the street to the place we were meeting Simon.

"I don't know; Mum has been a bit clingy recently" Clary looked at her feet as she walked.

"Come on it'll be fun" I argued hooking my arm around Clary's elbow.

"As long as my mum doesn't find out, then okay".

I cheered and started describing the outfit I'd brought with me that would be perfect for the nightclub. I almost didn't see Simon as he was standing against the fence and was deep in shadow.

"Hey Clary, Stella" Simon called as he stepped out to meet us.

"Hey yourself" I replied throwing my arms around his shoulders.

"I just want to thank you guys for doing this" Simon said as we started off down the road "poetry means a lot to Eric".

"Don't mention it" Clary replied throwing me a wink.

...

"No offence Simon, but that was terrible" I complained as we left Java Jones a few hours later.

"Why, I am mortally offended by such an accusation!" Simon dramatically placed his hand over his heart and made a pained face.

"Jeez, you're such a drama queen" I nudged Simon's shoulder and pulled Clary towards the nearest public toilet "please wait the barest of moments Mr. Shakespeare" I told him.

"So you ready to hit the nightclub now?" I asked as I shut myself away in a cubicle.

"I guess, but I don't have anything edgy to wear in there" Clary complained from the other side of the door.

"Don't worry about that, there's a spare shirt in my bag anyway" I nudged my bag under the door and heard Clary dig through it.

"What do you think?" I asked stepping out of the cubicle.

I did a twirl that accentuated the fringe of the mini skirt and tugged at the top of my strapless shirt. I'd matched it with a pair of fishnet stockings and stiletto heels.

"Jeez, what would Luke say if he saw you wearing that?" Clary asked stepping into the cubicle herself.

I laughed "he'd have a heart attack I'm sure".

Clary didn't take long to change and the trek to the nightclub could begin.

...

"I am so underdressed" Simon said as we moved through the dance floor, weaving in and out of writhing bodies dressed in leather and studs.

"Hey Simon, what do you think about her?" I asked pointing at a girl in a long white dress.

"Do you guys want something to drink?" Simon asked avoiding the question.

"Yeah" Clary replied as she moved towards the mesh wall in the centre of the room.

"What are you looking at?" I asked standing next to Clary.

I looked in the same direction and saw the girl in white was dancing close to a boy with bright blue hair. I noticed two boys come up on either side and suddenly the blue haired boy was struggling to get away. I glanced around at the rest of the crowd and could see that nobody was seeing what was happening. I looked back at the small group in front of us and saw the taller boy had drawn out a large clear blade. I clapped a hand over my mouth as he plunged the blade into the restrained boy's chest. Next to me, I heard Clary scream out. The tall boy looked directly at us and I was shocked to see he was the one who'd been following me. Simon was suddenly asking if everything was alright and the tall boy and his friends melted into the shadows.

...

**CLARY**

"Did you just see what happened?" I asked Simon as he steered me across the dance floor.

"I didn't see anything, I heard you scream though, are you okay?" Simon was walking so fast Stella was nearly jogging to keep up. A difficult thing to do in high heels.

"You mean you didn't see that guy get murdered?" Stella asked once Simon had slowed his pace.

"You mean you saw them too?" I asked spinning around.

"Yeah, and I think we should get going" Stella replied checking the time on her phone "Aunty Joss is gonna kill us if we get home any later".

"Okay, I guess we'll see you tomorrow at Java Jones" I said turning to Simon.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Simon asked placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Yes, I'm sure your mum is wondering where you are as well" I replied.

"Okay then, see you tomorrow" Simon raised his hand in a wave and set off.

Stella and I walked in silence for most of the way home. I still couldn't understand why nobody else could see what had happened. Then there was the way Stella was acting; subdued is not her style.

"Are you okay?" I asked as we turned into my street.

"What? Yeah I'm fine, why?" Stella replied as we stepped into the lobby of the apartment.

"You look like you've seen a ghost" I said quietly as we made our way up the stairs to my flat.

"I'll tell you when we get inside" Stella replied as I eased the door open. We tiptoed across the living room and shut my bedroom door as quietly as was possible.

...

**STELLA**

"So, what's up?" Clary asked sitting on her bed after changing into her pj's.

"Well, you saw that tall guy right?" I said as I changed my clothes as well "he's been following me for the last couple of weeks now and I don't know why".

"Have you mentioned this to Luke?"

"Yeah, but he can't do much about something he hasn't witnessed himself" I failed to fight off a yawn. "I need to sleep, g'night" I said.

"Night" Clary replied as she turned the light off.

I curled myself into a ball and tried to ignore the face of the tall boy that kept invading my mind. His image shifted to focus on his arms and the symbols visible under his sleeves. The same ones that Dad had on his arm; the runes of a Shadowhunter.

-x-

Heartless-x-Love: Welcome to my newest story. I've only just got into this fandom within the past couple of weeks and this story popped into my head. If you haven't figured it out already, this is slightly different from the movie and that is because I'm mixing elements from both the book and the movie. So I hope enjoy my version of City Of Bones, please R/R.

May the Angwel watch over you.


	2. Shadowhunters

**SHADOWHUNTERS**

**STELLA  
**

I yawned so wide my jaw cracked. I looked at Clary's bed and found she wasn't in it. I sat up straighter and looked around the room. My jaw dropped when I saw the hundreds of pieces of paper stuck around the walls. I looked at the clock. "Jesus, is that the time?" I swore and hurriedly dressed. I arrived in the kitchen and could hear an argument in progress at the front door. I peeked around the corner and saw Clary try to open the door, only to be stopped by Jocelyn.

"This is ridiculous" Clary said with a huff.

"Where are you going?" Jocelyn asked.

"We're just going to Java Jones" Clary replied looking around to see me in the kitchen. "Tell her we're just meeting Simon for coffee" Clary looked back to Jocelyn.

"If this is about last night I-" I was cut off by the door suddenly opening.

"Jesus!" Jocelyn exclaimed.

"Nope, just me" Simon replied with a smile.

"Clary there's something I want to tell you" Jocelyn put her hand on Clary's shoulder.

"We can talk about this later" Clary replied pulling out of her mother's embrace "come on Stella, Simon".

"See you later Mrs. Fray" Simon and I said in unison.

We followed Clary down the stairs and out onto the street.

"So what was that all about?" Simon asked as we headed down the street.

"Oh, um, nothing" Clary mumbled.

Simon looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

"I only heard the end of it before you burst through the door" I replied.

"Guys can we not talk about this please?" Clary asked as we made our way into Java Jones.

"Sure" Simon replied "I'll get the coffee".

"Thanks" Stella and Clary replied.

...

**CLARY**

We sat down on one of the lumpy sofas and I started to glance around.

"Something wrong?" Stella asked.

Simon returned before I could reply and sat between us.

"Here we are" he said handing the cups out "now what's wrong Clary?"

I pulled out a handful of papers and spread them out on the table "I drew hundreds of these things last night and I don't know why".

"I think I'm going crazy" I said glancing around the café.

"I'm sure there's a reason for it; maybe you're like that guy in Close Encounters he…" Simon stopped when he saw I was staring at something outside.

Stella looked around and I knew she could see the blonde guy from the club standing on the street looking at us.

"What is it?" Simon asked as I quickly ducked my head.

"This can't be happening" I mumbled.

"Okay, now you're freaking me out" Simon replied with a short laugh.

Stella appeared to be watching the guy as he made his way into the café and passed in front of our table.

"What are you staring at? There's nothing there" Simon said.

...

**STELLA**

I saw the guy head for the rear exit of the café.

Clary jumped to her feet "I'll be back" she said grabbing one of the runes.

"We won't be long" I said getting to my feet as well.

"Okay" Simon looked confused but didn't argue.

I followed Clary outside into the alley next to the café and saw the Shadowhunter standing against the wall.

"Why can we see you and no-one else can?" Clary asked breathlessly.

The Shadowhunter looked from me to Clary "I was going to ask you the same question".

"Why have you been following me?" I asked angrily.

"For the simple fact that you can see me and I know you're one of us" the Shadowhunter replied.

"Who are you?" I asked crossing my arms.

"Jace Wayland, I'm a Shadowhunter".

"What do you mean she's one of you?" Clary asked confused before shaking her head. "I don't even know why we're talking to you; you're a cold blooded killer".

"As opposed to a peace loving killer?" Jace replied with a smirk.

"Why am I drawing this?" Clary asked holding up the piece of paper.

Jace snatched it out of her hand and started pacing "so I was right then, you're not a mundane".

"I'm sorry? What's a mundane?" Clary asked confused.

"Someone from the human world who can see demons and things" I replied.

Jace stared at me in silence before turning to Clary "when did this start?"

"No! tell me why am I drawing this?!" Clary grabbed the paper from Jace's hand "answer me!"

I noticed a couple of men next to their car looked around at Clary's outburst.

Clary's phone started ringing and she ignored it.

"It could be your boyfriend" Jace said stepping away.

"He's not my boyfriend" Clary replied.

"Does he know that?" Jace countered as my phone started ringing.

I looked at the screen and saw Jocelyn's name flashing. With a quick glance at Clary, I answered.

"What's up Aunty Joss?"

_"Is Clary with you?"_ Jocelyn said breathlessly.

"Yeah".

_"Pass the phone to her please"_ Jocelyn said over the sound of loud scraping.

"Okay" I handed the phone to Clary.

"Look I'm coming home alright" Clary said with a sigh.

I grew uneasy when I saw the look of fear appear on Clary's face.

"Mum?!" Clary suddenly shoved the phone back into my hand and took off running down the street.

"What's wrong?" Jace asked.

"I don't know but it sounds like something is wrong with Aunty Joss" I started jogging after Clary, sending Simon a text to tell him where we were going.

"Wait!" Jace called before running after me.

I arrived at Clary's house a few minutes after her. I followed Clary upstairs and I was shocked to see the destruction spread from one end of the place to the other. Clary stepped over the rubble and peeked around the wall into the kitchen. I joined her and was surprised to see a large Rottweiler standing in the middle of the room. I stepped back as the dog started shaking his head violently. My jaw dropped when his forehead split open and his face changed.

"We should go" I said tugging on Clary's arm.

Clary didn't have time to respond before the dog had changed his form completely and had transformed into a multi-legged creature that had drool dripping from its mouth. With a scream we split up and ran in different directions. I hid behind the door to Jocelyn's room and realised the creature had followed Clary. I pushed myself out from hiding and cautiously looked in the kitchen. The dog and Clary were gone and I could hear Clary screaming from her bedroom. I picked up the heaviest pan I could find and crept towards Clary's room. I found the dog was trying to get at Clary through her broken bedroom door. I came up behind it and brought the pan down as hard as I could on it's head. To my dismay, my hardest hit had only pissed the creature off. It swung around to face me and lashed out with one of its legs; it caught me in the chest and hurled me backwards into the wall. My vision went black as my head hit the brickwork and I collapsed on the floor in unconsciousness.

The next thing I knew was Clary's voice muttering rapidly above me. I cracked open my eyes and blinked a few times to clear the blurriness. "Wh-where's the dog?" I asked trying to sit up.

"It's dead" Jace replied as he helped Clary pull me into a sitting position.

"What was that thing?" Clary asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you" Jace replied helping me to my feet.

"It was a demon wasn't it?" I replied placing a hand on my throbbing head.

"How did you know that?" Jace asked with a raised eyebrow.

"My dad mentioned them to me" I replied.

"Wait, you mean Luke knows about Shadowhunters and demons?" Clary said with disbelief.

"Yeah, but he told me not to tell you" I rubbed my head and looked at the floor.

Suddenly a door slammed downstairs and Clary jumped. She was quickly running out the door and Jace turned to me in confusion.

"Where's she going?" he asked.

"Probably to see Madame Dorothea" I replied heading for the door.

...

**CLARY**

"Dorothea open up please!" I called banging on the door in front of me.

The door was cracked open and a squat old lady peered over her glasses at the people standing on the other side.

"Can you…" I began before the door was closed.

Stella looked at me and shrugged "try again".

I banged on the door again "do you know what happened to my mum?"

The door was opened again and Dorothea looked up and stared at Jace.

"Wait, you can see this guy?" I asked breathlessly.

"Of course she can" Jace replied "she's a witch".

I pushed past Madame Dorothea and stood in the middle of the living room "do you know what happened to my mum?" I asked again.

"I'm sorry, I have no idea" Dorothea replied looking at each person standing around the room.

"Downgraded from a Gingerbread house to a one-bedroom?" Jace smirked as he went past.

"My mum, she said a name, uh, um, Valentine" I stuttered.

...

**STELLA**

I noticed Jace narrow his eyes at the mention of the name. Then I remembered what Dad had said about a man named Valentine being the person who killed my birth parents.

"You'd better leave" Dorothea said moving towards the door.

"Not until you tell me something" Clary said "anything!"

Dorothea sighed and shut her door. She moved to another room and brought back a deck of cards "let's see what the Cards have to say".

"I'm sorry but you know I don't believe in…" Clary said.

"Sit" Dorothea ordered.

Clary sat in a chair and huffed.

"Run your hand over the cards" Dorothea said.

"My mum painted these" Clary said looking at the cards closer.

"Yes, they were a gift" Dorothea replied "let's see which card gets picked".

I stood next to Jace as we waited for something to happen. Clary suddenly stopped moving her hand and turned over one card.

"The Ace of Cups" Dorothea said.

"That's the Mortal Cup!" Jace exclaimed.

"What?" Clary looked at the image on the card.

"Ignore him" Dorothea replied.

"That's one of the three Holy Instruments of my people" Jace pointed his finger at the card "what's it doing here?"

"I don't understand" Clary said looking from Jace to Dorothea "what's this got to do with my mum?"

"She was a Shadowhunter" I said looking at the card ignoring the incredulous glances shot my way by Jace and Dorothea.

"What? No my mum is a painter" Clary replied.

"She never told you any of this did she?" Dorothea said.

Clary looked at Dorothea with a blank expression.

"Let me read you" the woman said sitting next to Clary. She took a deep breath and placed her hands on Clary's head.

While she was busy doing that Jace picked up the card and began to study the image.

"There's something blocking your mind" Dorothea said finally before getting up "my guess is your mother hired someone very powerful block your memories". Dorothea held her door open and waited for us to exit her apartment.

"Why?" Clary asked "I can't remember anything she'd want me to forget".

A loud thump suddenly sounded from upstairs. Clary glanced at the ceiling before grabbing the fire-extinguisher from the hallway and heading up the stairs.

"Wait!" Jace called before he turned back to Dorothea "nice to meet you". With me following he ran up the stairs and joined Clary.

I suddenly felt very unwell and leant against the wall to stop myself from falling over. Jace raised an eyebrow at me before Clary jumped around the wall and started bashing the intruder with the extinguisher.

...

**CLARY**

"Ow! Ow! Ow! What the hell?!" Simon yelled grabbing the back of his neck.

"You scared me" I said stepping into the kitchen and using the extinguisher to put out the small fires around the room.

"What the hell happened here?" Simon asked.

"Someone took my mum and destroyed the place" I replied putting the extinguisher down on the counter.

"What?" Simon looked to Stella for answers.

"It's true" Stella replied rubbing a hand on her chest.

"Okay, um, so this guy is helping to find her" I mumbled leading Simon to where Jace had been standing "you can't see him and…great, now I can't see him either".

Jace cleared this throat and stepped out of the living room "Jace Wayland, demon-hunter". He walked past Simon and into the kitchen.

"Simon Lewis, key-master" Simon replied "are you the Gatekeeper?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about" Jace replied before he began to dig around in the rubble in the kitchen.

...

**STELLA**

I had to lean against the wall and must have blacked out for a moment because the next thing I remembered was Clary saying she had to find my dad.

"He should be home" I replied trying to get rid of the sick feeling in my stomach.

"Let's go" Clary said heading out the door.

It was raining heavily as we exited a taxi outside Dad's store.

"You wait here" Jace told Simon.

"Who made you the boss?" Simon asked.

"It's okay" Clary said "just let us know if anyone comes".

After Jace and Clary had gone down the stairs into the basement I had to lean against the store window as I felt sick again. This time I was physically sick and Simon looked worried.

"What's wrong?" he asked handing me a tissue.

"I don't know" I replied "I must have caught a bug".

"They're taking their time" Simon said as a police car pulled up on the curb.

I glanced at the officer stepping out of the vehicle and felt my stomach drop; they didn't have a normal face.

"Officer I'd like to report a break in and a missing person" Simon said walking up to the officer.

I wanted to tell him the man wasn't human but Clary was suddenly yelling for us to run. I hauled myself away from the window and shoved Simon into action as Jace emerged from the basement. He had a clear blade in his hand and he slashed it across the neck of the officer who'd grabbed hold of Clary's jacket. He slid over the hood of the car and kicked the door closed on another officer before stabbing his blade through their back.

"You just killed two cops!" Simon screeched.

"They weren't cops" Jace replied "let's go". He took off around the corner and Clary, Simon and I quickly followed.

I was nearly at my limit and was granted a small reprieve when Clary started having a panic attack.

"I'm a Shadowhunter Clary, I will protect you with my life" Jace said pulling Clary to her feet.

"Okay, I'll follow you" Clary said with a weary nod.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Simon asked "because he just killed two cops!"

"Yeah, they weren't cops" Jace replied exasperatedly.

…

"They looked like real cops to me" Simon said on the train heading back to New York.

"They weren't real cops" Jace said for the hundredth time.

"Where'd they get the car from them, hmm?" Simon wouldn't let it go.

"Simon" I said leaning heavily on a pole "stop with the cop thing for God's sake".

Simon was quiet for the rest of the trip.

Jace lead the way from the train station and across the city towards a huge gate. I looked up and realised we were standing outside the place my dad had called the Institute. It was here I had to come if I wanted to be a Shadowhunter.

"We'll be safe here" Jace said pulling a key out of his pocket.

"What is this dump?" Simon asked.

"It's not a dump" Clary replied, awe in her voice "you just can't see it".

We followed Jace as he lead us down a short path and through an immense door. Once inside I watched in amazement as the door locked itself. All of a sudden Clary swayed and fell down.

"What's going on?" a voice asked from the top of the staircase "what are they doing here?"

I looked up from the prone form of my friend in Jace's arms, to find a boy with dark hair and bright blue eyes walking quickly over to us. My legs suddenly became to weak to support me and I collapsed into the dark haired boys arms.

-x-

Heartless-x-Love: Hiya, here is chapter two. So the story is moving along nicely now and it's becoming more interesting. What are your thoughts so far? I'd love to hear them, good, bad or otherwise!

May the Angel watch over you.


	3. Runes and Angels

**RUNES AND ANGELS  
**

**STELLA**

"Are they going to be alright? It's been three days now" a voice broke through the edges of my consciousness.

I recognised the voice as Simon's and I couldn't imagine what had happened since I'd collapsed into the arms of the cute Shadowhunter with the blue eyes. It was as though that thought was what I needed to swim to the surface and open my eyes. I cracked my eyelids open and blinked a few times as my eyes adjusted to the bright light spilling into the room from huge windows. I rolled my head and Simon came into view, sitting on a chair between my bed and Clary's. My eyes registered movement behind Simon and I focused on Jace pacing the floor. I made an attempt to sit up and absentmindedly scratched at my chest.

"Ow!" I exclaimed as my fingers brushed over a sore spot.

"That explains it" Jace said stopping his pacing and standing in front of my bed.

"Explains what?" I asked settling back against the headboard.

"You're the child of Shadowhunters" Jace replied flicking his eyes over to Clary; who'd started to move.

"Tell me something I don't know" I replied.

"Ah! I pass out and you guys tattoo me?" Clary said looking down at her arm "I thought that only happened in Vegas?"

"It's not a tattoo" Jace said returning his gaze to me.

"Yeah, it's a rune" Simon said with excitement "they have them for everything".

"What do you mean you know?" Jace asked drowning Simon out.

"My dad told me my birth parents were the Shadowhunters Mark and Fiona Roseivy and that Valentine killed them because he thought they knew where the Mortal Cup was" I replied, ignoring the stunned looks being shot in my direction by my friends.

"Are they awake yet?" a girl with long black hair asked as she strode into the room with an armful of clothes.

I saw instantly that this girl was the sister of the other Shadowhunter. They looked so much alike.

"Here" the girl said dumping one pile of clothes on my bed and the other on Clary's "see if these fit". She moved away from the beds and started fussing with something at a high bench.

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and pulled a privacy screen in front of me. I changed and was happy that the clothes fitted well. I stepped out from behind the screen and pushed it over to Clary.

"We should call the cops" Simon said "you know, the real ones".

"Yeah I don't know why we haven't thought of that in the last thousand years" Jace replied shortly.

"Hodge is ready for them. He wants to see them in the library".

I looked around and was met with the black haired Shadowhunter.

"Let's go" I said once Clary had finished dressing.

…

**CLARY**

"You know that rune looks like a really wicked tattoo" Stella said looking at my arm as we followed behind Jace.

"Yours looks cool too" I replied with a smile.

"One question though, how did it get there?" Stella asked the air.

"I put it there after you fell on me" the black haired boy answered.

"I guess I should say thank you" Stella replied with a smile.

"Humph" the boy replied striding ahead.

"What did I do?" Stella asked Jace as we turned a corner.

"Nothing, Alec just doesn't think you should be here is all" Jace replied.

"Oh" Stella frowned and rubbed her hand over the mark on her chest.

"You may find Hodge a little eccentric but he's one the greatest Shadowhunters to have ever lived" Jace said once we'd reached the library.

My eyes went wide when she saw the many rows of books that lined the walls of the enormous room. I moved further into the room and found a photo album on one of the tables and started leafing through it.

Stella joined me and we saw a picture of Mum and Luke standing with a man neither of us recognised.

I turned the page and Stella rocked back on her heels when she saw the occupants of the next photo.

"What's wrong?" I asked in a hushed voice.

"Those people are my birth parents" Stella replied pointed at the man and woman. She bent closer to the image and I saw much of herself in the pair. She had her mother's ginger hair and her father's deep blue eyes.

"They were wonderful people, you're parents" a voice said from above us.

We girls looked up to find an elderly man making his way down a set of spiral stairs.

...

**HODGE**

"Three days ago you were normal girls, and now you feel as if your whole life had turned upside down" I said with a smile.

"Are you Hodge?"

"Yes and you must be Estelle Roseivy?" I said standing in front of the girl.

"My name is Stella Garroway not Roseivy" she retorted.

"Forgive me" I replied "I didn't realize you'd been formally adopted by Lucian".

"How did you kn…" Stella began before she was cut off by Clary.

"I don't understand" Clary said looking at the pictures.

"Forgive me" I said moving around the table and towards a large statue. "There's one thing you need to know. The stories you were told as little girls, about monsters and nightmares, legends whispered around campfires, they're all true" I stopped and looked up at the statue.

Clary and Stella joined me.

"Is that the Mortal Cup?" Stella asked pointing to the object in the statue's hand.

"Yes" I replied "the legend goes the Crusaders summoned an Angel, the Angel Raziel. Raziel poured his blood into a cup and those who drank from it became half angel, half human".

"Shadowhunters" Clary finished.

"Yes" I replied "as did their children and their children's children. Beings of immense power. Strong enough to restore balance and protect the world in a war against evil. A war that can never be won but must always be fought" I turned to face both girls. "Demons don't die easily" I continued "but we, we remain all to mortal".

"Why didn't they just use the Cup to create more Shadowhunters?" Clary asked folding her arms across her chest.

"Valentine's exact words" I replied "the Clave, the keepers of the Cup, they were afraid of using its power. They knew that hardly anyone who drank from it survived". I paused for a moment "Valentine Morgenstern drew a circle of friends together…young idealistic Shadowhunters…to help him steal the Mortal Cup from the Clave".

"Were my birth parents part of that group too?" Stella asked.

"I'm afraid so" I replied before continuing "but he didn't want to protect humanity. He believed there had to be an evolution of Shadowhunters…something more powerful. He began experimenting using the Mortal Cup. He learned how to summon demons. He even injected himself with demon blood so he could control them. He wanted to rule". I looked at Clary "your mother, to prevent that, stole the Cup from him…and vanished into thin air".

Clary drew her eyebrows together "but if she's the only one who knows where the Cup is then…"

"Maybe she isn't" I replied standing in front of Clary "maybe she told someone else. Someone who doesn't know she knows".

Jace's appearance at the library door cut short any thinking over what the girls had just been told, "the Silent Brothers are ready for them".

-x-

Heartless-x-Love: Here is chapter three, and I apologise for the wait. My internet packed it in, but it's okay I'm back online now. I would love to know what you all think.

May the Angel watch over you.


	4. The Silent Brothers

**The Silent Brothers**

**CLARY**

"Why didn't Hodge come with us?" I asked as Stella and I followed Jace along a leaf-strewn path in the cemetery a few miles from the Institute.

"He hasn't left the Institute in years" Jace replied kicking at the leaves "some say it's a spell".

"He's agoraphobic" I said turning to Stella.

"Or maybe he just like the smell of old books so much he doesn't want to leave?" Stella said with a smile.

"Maybe" Jace replied a small smile on his face.

"Is that him?" I asked indicating an old man raking leaves.

"No, that's Harold, the ground's keeper" Jace replied.

"Is that him?" Stella asked pointing to a tall figure draped in black robes striding purposefully in our direction.

"That's him" Jace replied nodding his head.

We stood next to a mausoleum and waited for the figure to reach us. As he got closer I was horrified to see his lips were sewn together and where his eyes should be, black holes took their place. I took an involuntary step backwards as he leant close to me.

_"Are you sure you want to go through with this?"_ a voice said in my head.

I nodded and let out the breath I didn't know I was holding.

_"We will help you to remember"_ Brother Jeremiah stepped away and opened the gate of the mausoleum.

…

**STELLA**

I shivered as I stepped through the gateway. I didn't like small spaces much; I preferred to be in the open air with my dad. I fell in behind Clary and Jace as Brother Jeremiah led the way down a winding stone staircase. Some ways down I tripped and put my hand on the wall to steady myself, I found the wall to be covered in slime which I quickly rubbed off.

"Sh, you'll wake the dead" Jace said grinning in the dim light.

I shivered again and focused on were I placed my feet.

"I can't believe this place is just outside the city" Clary said as we came across a large chasm, with the staircase wrapping around the outside.

"Welcome to the City of Bones" Jace said as we looked down the gaping hole. "This is where the Silent Brothers draw their power…from the bones and ashes of Shadowhunters".

We had emerged in a tight corridor with crypts lining the walls and random skeletons draped here and there. I shuddered at how close the walls seemed and tried not to panic.

"All of them are buried here?" Clary asked as we made our way along the corridor.

"Yes" Jace replied "one day, that's going to be me" he tapped the front of one of the crypts.

"What a morbid thing to look forward to" I said.

"This is as far as I go" Jace said stopping in an archway that was one of many surrounding a cavernous room "you'll be fine".

I could see more Silent Brothers taking up positions around the edge of the room as Brother Jeremiah closed a gate behind us.

I looked at Clary nervously "I suddenly don't want to do this".

"There's nothing to be afraid of" Jace said as Brother Jeremiah came towards me "they're just going to see if what you told us is true".

_"It won't harm you"_ Brother Jeremiah said as he led me towards the middle of the room before taking up his place in the circle.

In a flash of light I suddenly found myself in a small room. There was a crib in the middle of the room and two people with runes covering their arms were standing over it. I moved around them to look at their faces and realised they were my birth parents. They were looking down at a wriggling baby with orange hair..ME!

Another flash of light and I was standing in a large room with furniture strewn around then I noticed three people near one of the two doors. I moved towards them and saw the woman was holding something in her arms.

"Is this a good idea? I barely know her" one of the men said.

"Please take her, we don't have much time until Valentine finds us" my mother pleaded as heavy steps sounded in the hallway.

"Please! She'll be safer with you" my father said as he braced himself against the door.

My mother kissed the bundle on the top of the head and placed me into Dad's arms.

"Fiona, I…" Dad looked helplessly at his friends and suddenly the door flew inwards, knocking my father to the ground.

"Go!" my mother yelled taking out her sword.

Dad nodded and headed out the door on the other side of the room. He looked back and saw my mother and father struggling with Valentine's men. Holding me close to his chest Dad ran out into the night and disappeared into the fog.

I felt the tears start spill over my cheeks as another flash of light brought me back to the present. My shoulders shook violently with my sobs as I thought of the last moments of my parents. Clary appeared in front of me and she wrapped her arms around me.

"Hey, it's alright" she whispered in my ear as she rubbed my back.

I sniffed and wiped my eyes "sorry, I'm taking up all of your time". I smiled weakly at Clary and went back and stood next to Jace.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Jace asked looking a little concerned.

"I'm fine, I mean I knew what happened to my parents but seeing it happen was a bit much to take in" I replied wiping my eyes on my sleeve.

Clary ended up standing motionless for a while before she suddenly collapsed to the ground. Jace and I ran over and I hoped she was okay.

"Clary! Clary are you okay?" Jace asked shaking Clary slightly.

Clary opened her eyes and sat up.

"The block is stronger than anticipated" Jace said looking intently at the random smudges in the dust on the floor "it can only be undone by the one who put it there".

"I have no idea who put it there" Clary replied.

"You wrote it" Jace said drawing a few lines in the dust "your mind remembers the inverted image; you just have to look at it differently".

Clary and I watched as Jace's lines formed a word.

"Bane" Jace said as though he'd thought that the whole time.

"Who?" Clary asked.

"Magnus Bane, he's a Warlock" Jace replied.

"Well, let's go talk to him" Clary said getting up.

Jace quickly looked her up and down before doing the same to me "not like that, you need some help from Isabelle".

-x-

**A/N:** I am so sorry it has taken me this long to update. I am making a concerted effort to update my stories on a weekly basis, so with luck you'll hear from me every Saturday. If not I apologise most profusely.

May the Angel watch over you.


	5. Warlocks and Vampires

**Warlocks And Vampires**

**ALEC**

After Jace left to contact the Silent Brothers, I headed for the training room to blow off some steam. I was annoyed that he'd let the Mundanes stay, but I guess we owed them protection because of the Demon attack. I shoved my hands in my pockets and stomped down the hallway. The way the girl called Clary kept looking at Jace…I felt something in my chest that I'd never felt before. Izzy would say I was probably jealous, which was complete crap. Why would I be jealous of a mundane girl we'd only just met?

I pushed opened the training room door and started when Izzy's whip hurtled past my face. "What the hell?"

"Sorry!" Izzy said panting a little. "Didn't know you were there" Izzy wrapped her whip around her wrist and moved to sit on a bench on the edge of the room. "What's on your mind?" she asked picking up a water bottle.

"Nothing" I replied curling my concealed hands into fists.

"It doesn't look like nothing to me" Izzy said putting the bottle down. "You've been different since the Mundane's came and…oh!" Izzy's face lit up.

"What?"

"You're jealous of Clary aren't you? Or is it Stella? Hmm, Simon maybe?" Izzy winked as my face turned red.

"N-no" I stammered wishing my sister would just drop the issue.

"I'm not blind you know" Izzy said standing up "I see how Clary looks at Jace. It's the same way you do".

I froze and stared at my sister "what?"

"I was joking about Simon if you must know" Izzy made a face "he seems to be trailing me".

"Maybe he has a crush on you" I replied with a smile "maybe you should scare him off with your terrible cooking?"

Izzy lunged forwards and knocked me to the ground.

"Get off!" I wheezed, trying to regain my breath.

"What did you say about my cooking?" Izzy asked a wicked grin on her face.

"I said it was wonderful" I replied.

"I think you mean inedible".

Izzy and I looked up to find Jace standing over us with a lopsided grin plastered on his face.

Izzy let me up and I noticed the Mundanes were standing at the door.

"The girls need your help in the fashion department" Jace said to Izzy.

"Why?"

"We found out who put the block on Clary's mind" Jace replied "it's Magnus Bane".

"Oh, okay" Izzy replied "so they need to look like they belong at his party".

Jace nodded and turned to me "do you think you could help Simon?"

"I'd rather not but if we need to get information from Magnus Bane I guess I could lend him a shirt" I replied glaring at the Mundanes.

**Clary**

"This is a top" I complained when the garment Isabelle handed me only just covered my underwear.

"It's a dress" came Isabelle's reply.

"I can't pull this off" I moaned emerging from Isabelle's bathroom to stare at the horror in the mirror.

"Well, actually with the right shoes…" Isabelle mused sifting through the pile of clothes on her bed.

"No. I mean this dress is so tight it's like a second skin" I said making my way over to the bed "haven't you got anything else?"

Isabelle huffed "if you go out looking like your mundane self, you won't get within a hundred feet of Magnus Bane. He's the High Warlock of Brooklyn".

"I think you look badass" Stella said from the chair in front of the window.

She was sitting there in a very short dress, similar to what I had on only with sleeves and a plunging neckline, and thigh high boots with a stiletto heel.

"But it's so tight" I complained.

"Stop complaining" Isabelle said picking up a clip. "Come over here and hold this" she placed the clip in my hand and started arranging my hair.

"That guy Alec doesn't like me very much" I said as Isabelle piled my hair on top of my head.

"That guy Alec is my brother" Isabelle replied with a tight smile.

"I don't think he likes me either" Stella added.

"I wouldn't think about it too much" Isabelle replied "that's just how he is".

"Does Jace know how Alec feels about him?" I asked.

"Is it that obvious?" Isabelle asked concerned.

"It's really not that big of a deal" I replied.

"It isn't to me either, but it is to the Clave" Isabelle took the clip from my hand "I don't make the rules". Isabelle finished with my hair and stepped back "see, you look pretty".

"Thanks, I guess" I replied tugging at the hem of the dress.

**STELLA**

Clary and I followed Isabelle as we exited her room. I saw Jace and Simon were waiting. I smiled at how cool Simon looked in a leather shirt and secretly made a note to get him to wear one all the time.

"How is being dressed like a hooker going to help me find my mum?" Clary asked before she noticed Jace and Simon staring at us.

"Easy now, those are my clothes" Isabelle replied shrugging on a jacket. "Don't they look great Alec?" Isabelle asked as her brother came striding down the hallway.

"They look like someone whose phone number should be on a bathroom wall" Alec said brushing past and disappearing around the corner.

"I think you look great" Jace said, more to Clary than me.

"Y-you look amazing" Simon agreed.

…

We made our way across the street and I was amazed by the amount of people milling about.

"Wait, I've been here" Clary said suddenly as we walked up to the door.

Once inside my brain was assaulted by all the strange looking party goers. Some looked ethereal and delicate; some looked like they would slit your throat for the coins in your pocket and others I couldn't describe because they were just so different to anything I had ever seen in my life.

"Wait" Jace said as Clary went past him.

I turned to see Jace taking the clip out of Clary's hair.

"Is that better?" Clary asked with a smile.

"Better" Jace replied.

We made our way through the crowd and I grew uncomfortable with the stares we were receiving from a group of pale skinned people standing near a fountain.

"Well, well, look here" a voice said.

We all looked around to find a man with glittery makeup and cat-eyes striding towards us. I blushed when I realised he wasn't wearing any pants.

"I don't remember inviting any children of the Nephilim" the man said.

"Magnus Bane" Jace said nodding his head.

I was surprised this was the person who'd put the block in Clary's mind.

"We need to talk" Jace continued.

"You know I don't like you guys, but I'll let you stay" Magnus said sweeping his eyes over our group "but only because of the hot one".

Isabelle and Jace replied with "thanks" at the same time.

"What?" Magnus looked confused "I meant him" he pointed to Alec "the one with the blue eyes".

Magnus winked and Alec suddenly appeared to find the pot plant next to us fascinating. I could see a faint red patch on his cheek and smiled.

"And because of Clary" Magnus continued.

"Wait, how do you know her name?" Simon asked.

"Come with me" Magnus led Clary away and left the rest of us standing around awkwardly.

**SIMON**

Once Clary went off with the weird guy with no pants, the rest of us split into groups. Jace, Stella and Alec went one way and Isabelle and I went the other. I was trying not to think of how amazingly hot Isabelle looked in her tight pants and fitted top.

We walked past a group of creepy pale guys and leant against the rail of what I assumed was a bar.

"So, how long do you think we're going to be here?" I asked ordering a glass of what I hoped was normal water.

"Relax Simon, okay" Isabelle replied.

A few of the pale guys came up and started talking to Isabelle. She rebuffed them and had turned to say something when her eyes went wide. "Don't drink that!"

Her warning came too late as I'd already taken a sip. Isabelle knocked the glass out of my hands and I noticed the liquid wasn't clear anymore, it was weirdly blue. My vision started to get unfocused like I was underwater and I could hear Isabelle screaming but it sounded like she was miles away. I felt like I was being picked up and then my vision went black and Isabelle's screams faded to nothing.

**STELLA**

"So what does that rune mean?" I asked Alec as we wandered aimlessly around the crowd.

"Which one?" he replied.

"The one on your neck, it looks cool" I smiled up at him. I was trying to make friends with him, mainly because he saved my life.

"It means block or deflect" Alec replied "it negates any attack to that area".

"Okay, I guess that's handy" I looked around the crowd trying to find Simon and Isabelle.

I couldn't see Simon but I could see Isabelle rushing towards us, hair flying behind her and a look of panic on her face.

"Izzy? What's wrong?" Alec asked as his sister reached us.

"Vampires slipped something into Simon's drink and they took off with him" Isabelle gasped.

"Vampires?!" I thought back to the pale guys we'd passed before.

"We can't leave until Clary is finished with Magnus" Jace replied.

Isabelle was in a right state by the time Clary emerged from Magnus's rooms, Alec was doing his best to try and calm her down but she wouldn't stop saying it was all her fault.

Jace bounded up the steps and clearly told Clary wat had happened because she all but ran down the stairs and joined us.

…

**CLARY**

"We can't break into a vampire's lair" Alec said as we hurried along the pathway of a church "we never learn…"

"Don't start again" Jace replied with a sigh.

"Jace, you know the rules" Alec wasn't giving up on his lecture.

"Guy what are we doing here?" I asked "I thought we were trying to find Simon?"

I could see Stella was worried as well as we followed the others to the door of the church.

"We know where he is, we just need to pick up a few things" Jace replied opening the door with his glow stick-like tool.

"What is this, some kind of deal you have with the church?" I asked as we headed down the aisle to the altar.

Jace, Alec and Isabelle started scratching around in the dust as though they were looking for something.

"Demons exist all across the world, in their varying different forms" Jace replied wiping dust around on the floor. "Shadowhunters cling to no particular religion and in return all religions assist us in our battle. We could have easily gone to a Jewish synagogue or a Shinto temple". He stopped wiping the dust "here it is". He stuck his glow stick-thing into the floor and turned it.

A small creak sounded and Alec moved the alter out of the way.

"Beneath every altar in every church you'll find this" Jace said lifting a stone slab up to reveal a large wooden chest.

Stella and I looked into the chest and I was amazed to find an assortment of weapons.

"So what do you believe in?" I asked kneeling next to Jace as he started pulling trays out.

"I believe in myself" Jace replied "I know my job is to kill demons. I don't have to believe in anything else".

"What about the Angel Raziel?" I asked watching the others pull various knives and guns out of the boxes.

"It makes for a nice story" Jace replied.

"But Hodge says…"

"Hodge needs to get out more" Jace replied shoving a few knives into his belt.

"I thought…"

"Listen…I've been hunting demons for over a third of my life" Jace replied "and in all that time I've never seen an angel".

**STELLA**

I was only half listening to Clary's conversation with Jace; I was too interested with the contents of the boxes.

"So you guys really use all this stuff?" I asked Alec as he pulled out a pair of tonfa with silver points.

"Yes, in addition to our seraph blades and Izzy's whip" came the reply.

"Cool, would I be able to pick something out for my own protection? So you don't have to worry about feeling the need to protect me" I asked eyeing the crossbow.

"I guess so" Alec replied pulling out the crossbow and the quiver of mixed arrows that clearly went with it. "Do you know how this works?"

"I know the basics of the machinery but the different arrows have me lost" I said pulling a few out.

"The quiver is equipped to handle most demonic creatures" Alec replied "there's ones for killing demons, vampires and werewolves".

Werewolves! The thought that some of these arrows could kill my dad made me feel a little sick. I looked over at Clary and clearly the gun Jace was showing her made her feel squeamish as well.

…

**CLARY**

"Hotel of Death?" I said as we arrived at the place Jace said the vampires lived.

"You can't say they don't have a sense of humour" Jace replied as we looked up at the sign.

The vampires had changed the word 'DUMONT' to say 'DUMORT'.

"Come on" Isabelle called from the door.

Stella and I followed her inside and we waited for Jace and Alec. It sounded like they were having a disagreement before Alec stormed past us and dug a glowing rock out of his pocket.

Jace and Isabelle did the same and we made our across the filthy floor of the hotel towards the staircase. Halfway up I stopped and stared at something familiar in the dust.

"It's Simon's shirt" I said swallowing hard.

"Technically it's Alec's shirt" Stella chimed in as we hurried up the stairs to the first floor.

I thought I heard a noise and looked up the elevator shaft. "He's up here!"

Jace hurried over and shone the light of his little rock up the shaft. He looked up at the floor indicator and then led the way up to the fifth floor.

As we emerged on the floor my throat got tight when I saw Simon strung up with chains over the elevator shaft.

"Simon!" I rushed over and tried to reach him.

"Clary wait!" Jace called.

"Give me a hand" Alec said picking up one end of a discarded floor board.

With Jace's help, they passed the board to Isabelle and Stella who were on the other side of the shaft.

I took my boots off as quick as I could and slowly stepped onto the board.

"Steady" Jace said, placing his foot on his end of the board to stop it moving.

I slowly made my way along the board until I reached Simon.

"He's alive!" I called to the others as I started to unwrap the chains.

"Careful" Stella said as Isabelle helped with the chains.

Once the chain around his neck was removed Simon gasped.

"Get out" he wheezed "they don't want me, they want you. They want the Cup".

"Come on, let's go" I said as I helped Simon off the board and onto slightly safer ground.

With Simon supported between Stella and Alec, we made our way back to the stairs.

We made it to the end of the room before the vampires found us. They blocked off the doorway so we had to find another exit. We found another set of stairs and went down a few floors until we found ourselves in a huge dining room. We cautiously made our way past rotting chairs and then I heard shuffling behind us. The vampires had found us.

**STELLA**

Once I saw the vampires I thought we were done for. Jace, Alec and Isabelle readied themselves for battle and waited for the vampires to make their move. Clary and I supported Simon together and tried to stay out of the way as the vampires attacked.

Giving Simon over to Clary I pulled out a few arrows from my quiver and tried to locate the silver pointed ones. I found one and loaded the crossbow as quickly as I could before aiming at a vampire trying to attack Alec from behind. I pulled the trigger and watched the flight of the arrow as it skimmed Alec's hair and hit the vampire square between the eyes.

Alec looked surprised but nodded in thanks.

Clary, Simon and I slowly moved backwards but the arrival of a couple of vampires directly in front of us forced us to split up. Clary and Simon dove under the nearest table while I backtracked and tried to load another arrow.

I almost had it loaded when Jace, Alec and Isabelle retreated back towards me. Clary and Simon emerged from under the table a few feet away and turned their backs to the curtain behind them. Suddenly a vampire jumped out and grabbed Clary.

Clary screamed and placed the barrel of the gun Jace had given her against the vampire's chest and pulled the trigger. As the vampire fell to the floor Clary rearmed the gun and looked a little sick.

We all joined up again and tried to calm our breathing.

"There's too many of them" Isabelle gasped.

"Have a little faith" Jace replied with a smile as he looked at the large number of vampires in front of us.

Without warning the windows started smashing as huge forms leapt through them. As they hit the ground and laid into the vampires I realised they were werewolves. Werewolves I knew well; it was my dad's pack.

We all stood shocked and stunned as the vampires started attacking the wolves. One wolf was beset on two sides; while he was dealing with one vampire, another was coming up behind him.

"Alaric! Behind you" I yelled catching everyone off guard.

The wolf looked at me before he swung his head around and clamped the vampire in his jaws and shook him violently. Another wolf with a grey streak in his fur looked in our direction and I could practically hear the chastising my dad was giving me.

"Run!" Jace ordered and he led us out a side door to the fire escape.

We thought we were safe until a couple of vampires followed us out. Dad turned up and tore one vampire to pieces before turning to growl at us.

"Jace I need a knife" Clary said patting at one of Jace's pockets.

"Clary, wait!" I called, but I was too late.

The knife sunk into dad's side to the hilt. The painful whine he let out nearly brought me to tears.

"Sorry" I said taking a few steps closer.

"Stella what are you doing?" Alec asked incredulously before grabbing my arm and dragging me over to the ladder to the roof.

"You help Simon" Clary was telling Jace as she shoved Simon up the staircase.

"I'll help" I said jumping up and grabbing hold of the outside of the covered stairs. I shimmied up to the roof and turned around to help Jace and Simon.

Once Simon was up, Jace turned to help Clary but the other vampire had eluded Alec, Isabelle and my dad to grab Clary's foot.

Jace tugged hard on Clary's arms as they tried to break the vampire's grip. Their combined effort got Clary's leg into the light from the sunrise and the vampire let go with a scream. Clary and Jace fell over and I went to help Alec and Isabelle.

"Are you okay?" I asked Alec.

"Yes, nice shot by the way" he replied before looking at me intently. "You called out a name down there, what was that about?" Alec crossed his arms.

"I'll tell you the whole story back at the Institute" I replied looking back at Simon "he needs medical attention first, but I promise I will tell you everything".

"Okay then" Alec replied "let's go".

-x-

**A/N**: here I am again just like I promised. I hope you are enjoying my take on City of Bones, because once I'm done with the first book I'm continuing Stella's story through the rest of the books as well.

Until next week (hopefully)

May the Angel watch over you!


	6. Weapons & Training

**Weapons &amp; Training**

**STELLA**

Alec, Jace and Isabelle had agreed to meet me in the training room once Simon had been taken care of, so I could explain about what had happened at the hotel.

Jace was lounging on a balancing beam, tossing a knife in his hand. Isabelle was perched on the edge of a bench, curling and uncurling the whip on her wrist. We were waiting for Alec, who'd headed off to find Clary half an hour ago.

The door to the training room suddenly slammed open so hard it hit the wall and left a dent. Alec stalked through and threw himself into a spare chair next to his sister.

"Okay" Alec said taking a deep breath as if to calm himself "please explain why you called one of the werewolves by name and why you were stupid enough to approach a wounded one".

"Um, okay" I felt like I was about to break my dad's trust and I wasn't happy about it. "I approached the wounded one on the roof because that was my dad and the one I called Alaric is his second. I've known that pack since my dad moved to New York after fleeing Alicante with me when I was a baby". I stopped to take a breath and saw incredulous looks on the faces of the others.

"Wow" Jace breathed "that's certainly different to what I had in mind".

"So your dad is the leader of the Manhattan werewolf pack?" Isabelle asked.

I nodded and waited for Alec to speak.

"I was right when I told Clary you are better at defending yourself" he replied "being raised by a werewolf can't have been easy".

"I guess" I shrugged.

"Who is your dad by the way?" Jace asked sitting upright on the beam.

"Luke Garroway" I replied "he told me his Shadowhunter name was Lucian Graymark".

If I thought my tale of being raised by a werewolf had garnered attention, it was nothing compared to the reaction my dad's other name caused.

"Are you for real?" Isabelle asked "he was Valentine's _parabatai_ and was in the Circle!"

"He told me Valentine tried to kill him after his first Change, then I was given into his care by my mother before Valentine's men killed her" I felt my eyes grow damp. "How did you know he was in the Circle?" I asked after a minute.

"Our parents used be in the Circle as well" Alec replied.

"So, what happens now?" I asked looking from Isabelle, to Alec, to Jace.

"What do you mean?" Alec asked.

"You guys gonna kick me out or will you train me?" I replied shoving my hands into the pockets of my jeans. Technically Isabelle's jeans because I was still wearing her clothes.

"I don't see why we can't train her" Jace said jumping off the beam. "She's proven she can be trusted and she's handy in a fight" Jace winked at me before headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Alec asked.

"To find Clary" Jace replied.

"Don't make her upset" I said turning to Jace "it was her birthday the other day so you have to be nice".

"I swear by the Angel, I'll not upset her" Jace smiled "lest I be stabbed in my sleep by an avenging acquaintance".

"Um, okay" I couldn't decide whether he was being serious or making fun of me.

"I'm going to have to leave it up to you Alec" Isabelle said after Jace left. "I've got things to do" she smiled and left the room.

I turned to Alec and smiled "so what's up first?" I asked.

"Knowing the correct gear and weaponry that you should use is a good place to start" Alec replied heading for the door. "I'll show you the weapons room first then start you off with basic training".

I followed Alec down the hall and through another door, and found myself surrounded by a multitude of weapons. Some were arranged on the walls and some were leaning against the walls.

"Wow. This is amazing" I exclaimed moving closer to a rack of clear blades.

"All the Institutes around the world have a room similar to this one" Alec said moving past me to a rack of normal looking swords. "Shadowhunters sometimes use swords like these" Alec said holding up a small-ish rapier.

"I thought you guys only used the fancy looking clear ones?" I asked moving over to Alec.

"I'll get to those in a minute" he replied replacing the rapier. "Some Shadowhunters prefer to use light blades that can be wielded in one hand" Alec said moving over to a rack holding an assortment of knives.

"Lots of choice for Shadowhunters then?" I asked with a smile.

"Yes" Alec said picking up a pair of long daggers. "Now, these are easier in general to wield but knife throwing is difficult to learn so I wouldn't bother if I were you". Alec demonstrated the correct way to wield the daggers then handed them to me.

"What do you think?" he asked watching me test the weight and give them a little twirl.

"You're right" I replied handing the daggers back to Alec "they are much easier".

"Exactly" Alec said returning the daggers to their rack "seraph blades are used in the same way as daggers so I want you to become at least competent with the daggers first".

"Okay. Hey, what about the flails and things over there?" I made a beeline for the ancient looking weapons.

"Not much good in battle unless you have great strength and plenty of room" Alec replied standing next to me. "You are more likely to hurt someone next to you than a demon".

"Oh" I pouted and swept my eyes around the room "what about the pikes?" I asked.

"Again, not much use" Alec replied "they are mainly used by guards as ceremonial weapons".

My eyes lit up when I saw the next rack of weapons. Crossbows and bows!

"You are already competent in the use of the crossbow" Alec said "I prefer the bow but neither are meant to be used in an entrenched location. You need to learn to use your crossbow on the move". Alec looked down at me and the corners of his mouth were turned up in the smallest of smiles. "Loading while stationary is good but I'm going to teach you how to load, aim and fire while amid total chaos".

"Can't wait" I replied wondering how Alec would be able to create complete chaos indoors.

"One thing you need to know is that your body is also a weapon. If you ever find yourself without a weapon you need to remember your own strength" Alec said moving away towards the clear blades.

"I saw Jace use one of those on two demons pretending to be cops" I said.

"These are seraph blades, they are our fundamental weapons" Alec picked one up and twirled it around. "They are strong in their own right but their true power is revealed when they are named".

"What do you mean by 'named'?" I asked.

"It's when a Shadowhunter holds the blade and invokes the name of an angel" Alec replied. "You can't begin practice with one of these until you have been marked with the Angelic Power rune".

"How come?" I asked unhappy I couldn't pick up the blade.

"Even though you have Shadowhunter blood, it can seriously burn your hands" Alec returned the blade to its rack and looked at me. "As the _iratze _had no side effects it is safe to assume the rest of the runes would be no issue".

Alec dug in his pocket and pulled out a long, thin, glow stick "this is a stele; it's what we mark ourselves and our weapons with". "If you want I can place the Angelic Power rune on you now" Alec rolled the stele in his fingers. "Or I can finish explaining about the weapons and gear first?"

"I want to start training as soon as possible so now would be as good a time as any" I replied. "Where is the best place for the rune?"

"Either the base of your neck or the inside of both your wrists" Alec replied "they can be placed elsewhere but those are the recommended places". Alec stepped closer "hold your arms out and turn them palm up".

I did as I was told and Alec gently gripped my right hand.

"It may sting so try to stay still" he said raising his stele. The tip was glowing brightly and I held my breath as Alec lowered it to my wrist.

I watched in amazement as the rune took shape into something familiar. Then I realised this was the rune Clary had drawn on hundreds of pieces of paper a few days ago. As Alec finished the first rune I remembered my dad had been injured at the hotel and I hadn't called him to see if he was okay.

"Before you do the next one, can I call my dad?" I asked.

"I suppose, just don't take too long I have lots more to explain" Alec replied.

I moved a few feet away and pulled out my phone. I quickly dialled Dad's number and waited anxiously for his caller tone to finish. It was a parody tone I downloaded for him. He didn't see the funny side to having 'Who let the dogs out?' play every time someone called him. The song was half way through when he finally picked up.

_"You have a lot of things to explain young lady!"_ Dad said in a gruff tone.

"I know, I just wanted to check you were alright after Clary threw the knife at you" I replied in a low voice. Alec was pacing impatiently in the background.

_"What on earth were you doing at the hotel? Do you know how dangerous vampires can be?"_

"The vampires had kidnapped Simon and we went to save him" I replied "and yes I know how dangerous vampires are, one of them nearly killed Alec".

I heard a sigh through the phone as though my dad had expected my answer.

_"Where are you now? Is Simon alright?"_

"I'm at the Institute and so are Clary and Simon" I paused and bit my lip "I am sorry I got into so much danger but I'm also glad you turned up and that you're alright".

Another sigh came through the phone.

_"I'm your father, that's what I'm supposed to do. Just promise me you'll try to stay out of trouble"_ Dad said.

"I'll try. I love you" I replied.

_"I love you too, Stella"_ Dad said before hanging up.

"Right back to business" Alec said walking over and holding my left hand still. Once the rune was done Alec returned his stele to his pocket and went back to the seraph blades. "Shadowhunters normally carry two seraph blades as part of their everyday equipment" Alec said picking out two blades. "You should be able to hold these now" he handed the blades over, hilt first.

I gingerly grasped the hilt and let out a shaky breath when no burning happened. I twirled them around a little and found they seemed to be an extension of my arm.

"In addition to the seraph blades Shadowhunters also need a set of gear, like the clothes we were wearing at the hotel. You are going to have to borrow some from Izzy" Alec said. "We also have one primary weapon, a ranged weapon, a stele, a witchlight and a sensor" Alec looked at me "you already have the ranged weapon and the seraph blades, so now you need to choose your primary weapon".

I nodded and wandered over to the racks of swords. I placed the seraph blades carefully on the floor and started pulling down small-ish swords. I found most of them uncomfortable to hold and the ones that were comfortable were far to heavy. I turned back to Alec with a sigh.

"None of the swords feel right, do you have anything else?"

"We have some Japanese martial arts weaponry over there" Alec said indicating a rack by itself "maybe you'll find something in there? In the meantime I'll find you a scabbard for the seraph blades and a belt for the crossbow".

While Alec sought out the scabbard and belt I went to look at the Japanese weapons. There were katanas, shuriken, kunai and naginatas. The shuriken would be too small; the kunai also too small and I already had sword-like weapons, so I turned my attention to the naginatas. Some were authentic, Japanese-made ones with long poles and huge blades; and some were clearly imitations, with shorter poles and blades and screwed together in the middle.

I placed the seraph blades on the floor and picked up one of the real naginatas. It was awkward to manoeuvre and didn't feel right so I put it back and picked up one of the imitations. It fit comfortably in my hand and was simple to screw together. I knew Alec would try to create chaos for my crossbow practice so I assumed he would do the same for this weapon as well. With a nod I put the naginata under my arm and picked up the seraph blades, and went back to Alec.

"Right, now we need to find Izzy and get you a set of gear, and then your basic training will begin" Alec said holding out a leather scabbard and belt. "There's also room in the scabbard for the naginata" Alec said helping me put it on. "One more thing" Alec pulled a stele out of his pocket "you can have one of my spare steles".

"Thanks" I replied with a smile.

…

"It's a good thing you and Izzy are the same size" Alec said as I emerged from my bathroom dressed in a spare set of gear.

I looked down at myself and smiled. The clothes fitted perfectly and were comfortable to move in.

"You don't have to wear your weapons inside the Institute" Alec said as I reached for the scabbard and belt. "You should keep the stele and a witchlight on you though" Alec handed me a glowing rock with a rune carved into it. "Oh and here's a sensor" Alec place a small oblong box in my hand.

"What's that for?" I asked putting the witchlight in my pocket.

"It's device for detecting demonic activity, but you have to learn what the Marks mean before you can use it properly" Alec said getting off the edge of the bed he'd been sitting on. "Now we start your basic training" Alec said heading for the door.

Back in the training room Alec began explaining the training.

"The only things you are going to be practising tonight is balance and agility" he said indicating the balancing beams and a small obstacle course. "I want you to balance on the beam as long as possible without wobbling and then I want you to complete the obstacle course as quick as possible" Alec walked over to the beam. "I'll show you what I mean and then it's your turn".

After Alec had demonstrated what I was to do he stood next to me and gave me a half smile "off you go".

I took a deep breath and threw myself into the training.

Two hours later I was exhausted and bruised from the many times I'd fallen off the beam and the failures on the obstacle course. Alec seemed pleased though as he came over to where I was laying on the floor, where he handed me a water bottle and a towel.

"That was good for your first time" he said helping me to my feet. "I want you to meet me here every night at eight for the next few weeks for the rest of your training. You don't have to wear your gear tomorrow and it wouldn't hurt if you went to the library and read the Gray Book either" Alec said. "Your homework is to research and describe the Marks in the book. I will check it tomorrow night before we start your training".

"Okay" I said with a weary smile. "Hey Alec, why are you tolerating me more than Clary?"

"I guess it's because of Jace" Alec replied. "Clary is distracting Jace, making him more reckless than he normally is...and I guess I'm a little jealous of the way Jace looks at her". Alec stopped talking suddenly as he realised what he'd just said.

"Sorry" I said "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, I just don't like it when people I consider friends are unhappy".

Alec's face flickered with surprise for a moment before he gave me a half-smile. "Go get some sleep and study hard tomorrow" Alec said heading for the door. He waited for me to go through before closing the door and heading off down the hall.

"Goodnight, Alec" I called after him before heading for my room.

I yawned and trudged along the hall and as I turned a corner I ran into Simon.

"Sorry" I said before registering Simon's expression. "What's wrong?"

"I'm going home" he said.

"Why?" I asked taking in his hurt expression and slightly puffy eyes.

"It's clear to me I'm not welcome here, unlike you and Clary" Simon looked down at my clothes and half smiled.

"I'm sorry Simon" I said "be safe going home" I hugged him and patted his arm.

"Goodnight Stella" Simon replied before he continued on his way.

I entered my room and wearily locked the door behind me. I pulled off my gear and padded to the bathroom for a shower before crawling into bed, stiff and sore. I had placed my witchlight on the bedside table and watched the pulsating glow until I fell asleep.

-x-

**A/N**: here is the next chapter; I hope you enjoy it (even if it seems to drag on).

Until next week.

May the Angel watch over you!


	7. The Mortal Cup

**The Mortal Cup**

**STELLA**

"Where the shit is it?" I cursed traipsing up and down the halls. I was starving and I'd gotten myself lost in my search for the kitchen. I sighed and decided I'd go and ask Isabelle. I made my way to the end of the hall and tried to remember which way her room was. I huffed and turned left only to trip over a large cat. I looked down and raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know they had a cat" I mumbled to myself as I knelt down in front of the fur ball. "Do you know where the kitchen is?" I asked in a baby-voice as I scratched the cat's head. It blinked at me and let out a small meow before trotting off in the opposite direction. It turned around as though expecting me to follow before disappearing around the corner.

"As if the cat knows what I was talking about" I muttered deciding to follow it. To my complete surprise the cat led me straight to the kitchen and I could see Isabelle inside the room. "Thanks kitty" I said scratching behind its ear.

"His name is Church" Isabelle said coming to the door, ladle in hand.

"Is he yours?" I asked standing up.

"No, he belongs to the Institute if he belongs to anyone" Isabelle smiled and retreated back into the kitchen. "Are you hungry?" she asked over he shoulder.

"A bit, yeah" I replied seating myself at the counter "what are you making?"

"Porridge surprise" Isabelle turned around with a bowl of steaming goo and placed it in front of me.

"Smells good" I said picking up a spoonful. The taste wasn't what I expected but it wasn't unpleasant. "What's the surprise?" I asked once I'd finished eating.

"It's a secret" Isabelle replied with a wink "can't tell you or you might get rich off my amazing idea".

"Oh, okay" I shrugged and pushed the bowl away. "Thanks for breakfast, I've got to go and do my homework now but I've forgotten the way to the library, could you show me?"

Isabelle's eyebrows rose "did Alec give you homework?"

"Yeah, I need to research the runes in the Gray Book" I registered the surprise on Isabelle's face. "Is that odd?"

"A bit" Isabelle replied "I think Alec actually likes you, because he told me he would rather cut his hand off than have anything to do with Clary's training".

"Wow, okay then" I knew Alec like me better than Clary anyway after last night but I didn't realise he felt that strongly about it.

Isabelle smiled "library is this way". She led me along a short corridor and up one level in the elevator before stopping outside a familiar door. "Here we are, study hard now or Alec will make training hell" Isabelle smiled and disappeared.

I scanned the shelves for the book I needed and once I found it, I carefully laid it on a table. I dug around in a drawer for a pen and searched the room for paper. I found a pile in another drawer and then knuckled down to learn about runes.

...

"Stella?" Jace's voice snapped me out of my zone.

"Yeah?" I replied looking up from my half finished sketch of the _iratze _I was drawing. I saw Jace walking towards me with his weapons strapped to his back.

"Clary discovered the location of the Mortal Cup and we're going to retrieve it now" Jace said stopping at the edge of the table. He looked down at the paper strewn around and raised an eyebrow. "What's all this?"

"My homework for Alec" I replied finishing my sketch. "He wanted me to learn about runes and show him tonight at training".

"Hmm" Jace half smiled "we anticipate contact with demons so you're going to need your weapons and gear".

"Okay, I'll be ready in a few minutes" I replied packing my notes and sketches away in a pile before picking them up. "Where should I meet you guys?"

"The front door" Jace replied. "Oh it might be useful if you put an Unseen rune on your weapons, we don't need any dramas with Mundanes".

Once Jace left I dashed upstairs to my room and threw on my gear. I pulled on a pair of gloves that hid the runes on my wrists and pulled out my stele. I dug through my notes until I found the Unseen rune and then I carefully drew it on my naginata and seraph blades. I could still see them but it was though I was looking through water. They seemed to shimmer so I assumed the rune had worked. I made a point of memorizing the Visible rune as well. I checked myself in the mirror and saw a faint mark where the _iratze_ was. I rubbed the spot with a small smile and armed myself. Once I had double checked my weapons I went downstairs to join the others.

…

**Clary**

Looking at Stella dressed in gear with weapons on her back made me feel a little left out. As we made our way down my street I couldn't help but realise she was more accepted than I was. Alec clearly didn't like me, Isabelle seemed indifferent and Jace…I felt a blush creep up my face when I thought about Jace. A figure suddenly stepped into my view and I had to stop.

"Hey" Eric said.

"Hi" I replied shooting a glance at Stella.

"Clary, Stella, like wow" Eric seemed speechless. "You look different".

"Yeah, it's just something we borrowed" I said conscious of the invisible Shadowhunters behind us.

"I mean, nice outfits" Eric stuttered. "They're good" he smiled.

"Yeah…we can't talk now" I said moving past him. "Sorry".

I quickly looked behind me and saw Isabelle purposely nudge Eric as she walked past. I hid a smile at the confused look on Eric's face.

I led the way into my apartment block and stopped outside Madame Dorothea's door. Jace indicated to the others to go upstairs and Stella led Alec and Isabelle up the stairs. I raised my hand to knock on the door when it opened suddenly.

"Clary" Dorothea said smiling benignly.

"I came for the Tarot cards" I said.

"Why?" Dorothea asked.

"I need them. You know the ones my mum painted" I replied. "I just need to look at them really quickly and I'll give them back".

**STELLA**

I still couldn't believe the amount of damage the demon had done to Clary's apartment. I stepped cautiously around the debris strewn everywhere as I led Alec and Isabelle into the apartment.

"Incredible" Isabelle whispered, looking around.

Alec bent down and poured a pile of dust on the floor, before pulling out a blade.

"What's that?" I asked drawing a Visible rune on one of my seraph blades.

"It tracks the presence of demons" Alec replied as the dust started moving across the floor.

We cautiously followed it as it headed for the kitchen. It stopped and came back towards us.

"Does that mean the demon is invisible?" I asked when the dust started to change shape.

"No, that means the demon is downstairs!" Alec replied as a crash sounded from underneath us.

"Clary!" I squeaked running for the stairs.

Alec tried to open Madame Dorothea's door but it got slammed back in his face. He gave it a decent kick and the door flew inwards and the scene we were greeted with made my stomach curl.

Jace was slumped against the wall on one side of the room and Clary was struggling with what used to be Dorothea.

I gripped my seraph blade and tried to remember one of the Angel names I glossed over in a book I'd found in the library, called the Codex or something.

The demon threw Clary against the wall and she fell unmoving to the floor. "NO!" I yelled leaping in front of my friend. I raised my blade "Cassiel!" I yelled. The blade was suddenly glowing brightly and I turned my attention to the demon in front of me. I charged forwards and swung the blade at the demon's stomach. It was too quick for me and my attack sailed past. I felt a blow to the back of my shoulder and I careened into a low table and fell backwards over it.

I struggled to my feet and found I'd somehow deactivated my seraph blade. I remembered what Alec had said about the blades being strong in their own right so I resolved to try again. I was aware of Isabelle and Alec wielding their different weapons on opposite sides of the demon. I was also aware of Clary peeking out from behind a chair. The demon also appeared to have noticed her because it dodged around Alec and charged for Clary. Alec snarled and jumped onto it's back, wrapping his arms as tight as he could around the demon's shoulders.

"Clary, get out!" he yelled.

Clary stayed where she was as though frozen in fear.

"Clary! Run" I yelled moving forwards. My eyes flicked to Alec and my stomach dropped when I saw one of the demon's tentacles hovering behind Alec.

"Alec, no!" I yelled as the tentacle pierced the back of Alec's neck. He dropped heavily to the ground and the demon lashed out at Isabelle and I causing us to fly backwards into furniture. I groggily raised my head to see the demon pulling the piano in front of the broken door.

Jace had got to his feet and staggered in Alec's direction.

"I'll take care of him" Isabelle said hauling herself next to her brother. She placed his head in her lap and Jace came over to me.

"Are you okay?" he asked helping me to my feet.

I nodded and looked around for Clary. I found her banging on the window and yelling out.

"Simon! It's not really her!" Clary was shouting. "She's got the Cup!"

There was an almighty crash from the other side of the door and Clary turned to Jace in a panicked state.

"Simon!" she said, pointing to the door.

Jace heaved the piano out of the doorway and scrabbled for a seraph blade.

While he was dealing with the demon I moved over to Isabelle and Alec.

"Is he okay?" I asked holding my shoulder.

"No" Isabelle replied looking up at me with tears standing in her eyes. "Jace!" she called pulling Alec's collar down so I could see the red bite on the back of his neck.

Jace flew back in the room and knelt down next to Isabelle. "What's wrong?" he asked in a shaky voice.

"The runes aren't working".

-x-

**A/N: **Here is the third last chapter, after this there is only two more and I should warn you there will be coarse language.

Until next week.

May the Angel watch over you.


	8. Invasion Of Demons

**Invasion Of Demons**

**SIMON**

"Simon, you follow me" Isabelle ordered stripping off her weapons as we rushed into the Institute's infirmary.

Alec had been injured at Clary's place and Isabelle was in a right state. She rummaged frantically around in a drawer for some bandages and scissors.

"You cut these up" she said before storming over to where Clary was helping Jace remove Alec's boots.

"Fucking demon!" Stella cursed holding her shoulder "I think it dislocated my shoulder".

"Have you finished with the bandages yet?" Isabelle demanded before hauling Clary away from Alec. "Don't! you've done enough".

"Don't talk to her like that" Jace retorted. "This isn't her fault!"

"You're right" Isabelle replied glaring at Jace. "This is your fault!"

I ducked under Jace's arm as he flung one of Alec's boots on the floor and handed Isabelle the bandages.

"Isabelle!" Jace yelled rolling Alec over onto the bed properly.

"Alec kept telling you that you were going to get hurt! Now he's the one dying" Isabelle's eyes were shining with unshed tears as she wrapped the wound on Alec's neck.

I looked over at Clary and my heart went out to her. She was standing still with tears in her eyes.

**STELLA**

Alec was dying! He couldn't be; the bite he got from the demon wasn't that bad surely? Isabelle's face told me it wasn't something they could do anything about, but taking it out on Clary wasn't the answer.

"We needed to get the Mortal Cup" Jace shot back.

"There are other ways to do it than getting your best friend killed" Isabelle retorted.

Jace looked over at Clary "why don't you go and get Hodge?"

Clary took a few step towards Isabelle "I never wanted anything to happen to Alec. I'm sorry". She turned on her heel and left the room wiping at her eyes.

"We agreed to do this together" Jace fired at Isabelle. "We're a team!"

Jeez this argument was getting out of control! I shifted my arm and my shoulder screamed. I cursed again and dug around in my pocket with my left hand for my stele.

"Since Clary got here we haven't been a team!" Isabelle hissed.

Jace stood still for a moment before storming away in a foul mood.

"Simon come here for a minute" I called fumbling with the zipper of my top.

"What's wrong?" he asked stepping around Isabelle.

"I dislocated my shoulder so I need you to help me take my top off so I can sort it out". The look on Simon's face would normally have made me laugh until I couldn't breathe but time was of the essence. "Simon!"

With Simon's help I got my arm clear of my top and a few minutes later my shoulder was back in it's correct place. I quickly placed an _iratze_ on the area and the pain melted away.

"Are you going to help me or just sit there?" Isabelle asked when I'd donned my top again.

"Considering the way you abused Clary for something that she had no control over, I wasn't game to do anything in case I copped it too!" I retorted replacing my stele in my pocket.

"I didn't…" Isabelle was stunned to silence.

"How was she supposed to know Alec was going to…to get that hurt? It could easily have been anyone of us!" I replied testing my shoulder and finding it back to normal.

"Are you two going to argue until Alec recovers or are we going to try an find a cure?" Simon asked stepping between us.

"Yes, let's hope there's something in the cupboard that can help" I replied marching over to it and beginning to search.

"How is he?" Jace asked suddenly making me jump. I hadn't heard him return.

"Not good" Isabelle replied worry edging into her voice.

Suddenly the room shook, causing bottles to chink together.

"Someone just went through the portal" Isabelle said looking worriedly at Jace.

"I'll go check it out" Jace replied heading for the door, dagger in hand.

**CLARY**

I emerged on the other side of the portal and braced myself as I hit the pavement. I looked around and found I was next to Luke's truck. This wasn't where I was aiming for. I should be with my mother!

A sound startled me and I was surprised to see a little girl in a white dress dancing around the parked cars. She stopped and walked towards me. I realised she was a demon and started to panic when a huge wolf leapt across the road and clamped its jaws around her. They crashed through a shop window and I quickly looked at Luke's shop to see if the noise had got his attention. It didn't seem so, so I looked back at the broken window. I could see a hand picking up items of clothing; first a shirt, then jeans and finally boots. I waited anxiously to see what would step through the window and I was totally shocked to see Luke making his way out of the window.

"Sorry. I got a bit carried away" he said coming toward me.

I realised all of a sudden Luke was a werewolf. "Luke you're a…" I stammered.

"Clary, listen" Luke said walking slowly towards me. "Don't be afraid".

"Don't touch me!" I recoiled from his outstretched hands, half expecting claws to shoot out and scratch me.

"Hey" Luke replied kneeling down "there's no need for that". He looked around the deserted street "that thing will be back, we are not safe out here!"

Luke gave me his coat and led me to his shop. He paused as he locked the door before shaking his head.

"I jumped through the portal to get away from Valentine" I said as my explanation of my presence in Manhattan. "I thought I'd end up with my mum". I stepped past Luke and sighed "instead I ended up in the last place I wanted to be".

Luke huffed and went behind the counter "the portal brought you here because you must have been thinking of me". "Deep inside you know you can trust me".

"You said couldn't care less about what happened to either of us" I replied looking away. "You just want the Cup like everyone else".

"I said that to protect you" Luke replied hurt evident in his voice "what else could I do? I've keeping an eye on you this whole time".

"That was you at the hotel" I realised even though Stella's reaction to the wolves should have clued me in.

"Good throw by the way" Luke said placing Jace's knife on the counter.

"How long has Stella known?" I asked sitting down in an odd-shaped chair.

"Since she was old enough to understand why her dad turned into a 'big doggy' occasionally" Luke replied with a small smile.

**STELLA**

"Where the hell is Hodge?" Isabelle said straightening up from checking Alec's bandages. "We haven't got much time".

Simon and I were at the high counter mixing various things together in the hopes it would heal Alec.

"Does this look right?" Simon showed Isabelle his mixture when she came over to us.

"No" she replied taking the bowl off Simon and mixing it herself.

I noticed a hooded figure suddenly walk into the room and make it's way over to Alec. I glanced at Simon and knew he'd seem them too.

"Hey" he said to Isabelle "look".

Isabelle started forwards and the figure stood up and removed it's hood.

"Magnus?" Isabelle asked amazed.

The Warlock looked at all of us intently, his cat eyes shining. He thrust a piece of paper at Isabelle. "I'm going to need all of this. Lots of it".

Isabelle nodded and, motioning Simon and I to follow, led the way to the basement of the Institute. We paused outside a room with a low ceiling and Isabelle went inside.

"Take this" Isabelle said, handing a few bottles to Simon. She ducked back into the room and emerged with a few more; these she gave to me.

"Isabelle!" Simon called suddenly.

Isabelle and I looked in the direction Simon was staring and I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Aunty Joss was dressed in a long white gown and was floating in mid air.

Simon handed a couple of bottles to me an dug his phone out of his pocket. "Clary? We found your mum" Simon paused as Clary answered "yeah she's at the Institute".

"Wait here, we'll be back" Isabelle told Simon as she took the bottles off him.

"What? No…Isabelle!"

We left Simon muttering his complaints to himself and hurried back upstairs. We handed the bottles to Magnus and he whipped up his potion in no time.

It was an anxious wait but I noticed Alec's eyelids start to flutter.

"It looks like he's responding" Magnus said waving his hand over Alec's body. "He'll survive".

Isabelle and I let out a collective sigh of relief. Alec was going to be alright!

"Be careful" Magnus said as we started to move towards the door "you're being invaded".

Isabelle and I collected our weapons and rushed back downstairs to Simon. As we stepped into the corridor we'd left Simon in, ravens started dropping down the stairwell and landing around us. The sensor in my pocket started reacting violently and I knew the ravens were forming a demon.

Isabelle didn't wait for it to surround us and took off; I followed as quick as I could. When it appeared we were going to have to fight, Isabelle quickly whipped her seraph blades around and dispatched the demon. We hurried to find Simon and I hugged him hard when we found him safe and sound. Suddenly more demons turned up and I whirled my seraph blades in unison with Isabelle's until the threat had gone.

"Run!" Isabelle ordered before more demons appeared.

"Where?" I asked shoving Simon into motion.

"There's another exit" Isabelle replied ducking into a small corridor.

There was a door at the far end of it and we made our way towards it, only to have to duck into a side corridor when the sound of voices reached us. I placed myself in front of Simon and we waited until the voices had opened the door and were nearly level with us before Isabelle jumped out with her blade raised.

"Isabelle wait!" Clary squeaked.

I moved out of the darkness and found Isabelle with her blade pressed against my dad's throat. Clary was standing next to him looking worn out and the entire pack was milling around behind her.

"I almost killed you!" Isabelle said lowering her blade and stepping away.

"Yeah" Dad replied before searching for me. Once he'd found me in one piece he seemed to relax.

"This place is full of demons" Isabelle said as Dad started moving down the corridor.

"That's impossible" he replied "the Institute is hallowed ground".

"No one seems to have told them that" Simon said after assuring Clary that he was alright.

"Someone on the inside must have let them in" Isabelle said moving past Dad and cautiously looking around the open chamber.

"This is a rescue mission" Alaric hissed in Dad's ear "we are not equipped to fight demons".

"Hey Alaric" I said smiling in an attempt to cheer the man up.

"Greetings Stella" Alaric replied.

The pack spread out and we moved forwards toward the stairs. Suddenly one of the rear members screamed and disappeared. We were under attack and that got the pack ruffled. They all started changing and growling. More and more members vanished and soon it was clear we needed to barricade ourselves if we wanted to survive. We ran towards the room Aunty Joss had been in and slammed the door.

I tightened my grip on my seraph blades and started wracking my brain for more Angel names in case I needed them.

"We could use some help Alaric!" Dad yelled when Alaric stayed standing in the middle of the room instead of helping to barricade the door.

"There must be some other way out of here, right?" Simon asked shifting around the room nervously.

"No, there isn't Simon" Isabelle replied holding her blades out in front of her.

Clary seemed frozen for a moment before she put her knife in her boot and reached for Isabelle's stele.

"Clary? What are you doing?" I asked as she tore off her glove and placed the stele on her palm.

"Step away!" Clary ordered. She turned to face us and held her hand out "step away!"

We hurried to stand behind Clary as the demons broke through the door. There was a flash of red light and the demons froze. We looked at Clary in surprise and confusion.

"Clary? Which rune is that?" Isabelle asked.

"I don't know, it's just…"Clary mumbled in reply.

"I've never seen it before" Isabelle continued.

"Really?" Clary looked back at Isabelle.

"It's not in the book" Isabelle seemed thoughtful.

"It's fading" I said adjusting my grip.

We slowly made our way through the frozen demons until we were in the corridor where we'd got the ingredients for Magnus. I could hear the demons starting to creak and groan. They were coming back to life!

"They're coming in through somewhere" Isabelle said handing her seraph blade to Dad. "I'm going to stop them". She opened a barred door and dug out a flamethrower. "Come on" she said nodding to Simon, Clary and I.

"You guys go, we'll catch up" Dad replied testing the blade. It didn't burn his hand which confused me but I didn't care about that.

"I love you" I told him placing a kiss on his cheek.

"I love you too, now go" he replied as the demons started moving.

I ran after Isabelle and tried to ignore the roaring of the demons in the corridor behind me.

We made our way along another corridor which seemed to lead past the library. I peeked around the door and my stomach twisted when I saw Aunty Joss laying inert on a couch. A man came into view and I knew straight away he was Valentine!

"They're coming from the Dome" Isabelle was saying to Simon "let's go".

A nod of encouragement from Clary and I was all Simon needed to take off after Isabelle. Leaving Clary and I standing outside the library waiting for the right moment to exact our revenge.

"I'm coming for you, you son of a bitch!" I hissed.

-x-

**A/N: **second last chapter is now done. One more to go people, until the City of Bones part is done.

May the Angel watch over you!


	9. Valentine

**Valentine**

**STELLA**

I quickly checked I had all my weapons only to realise I'd left my crossbow in the infirmary. "I'll be right back" I whispered in Clary's ear.

"Where are you going?" she whispered back, turning to look at me.

"I left my crossbow in the infirmary so don't do anything silly or I'm gonna have to hit a bitch, okay?" I replied.

"Okay, be safe" Clary gave me a tight smile.

I cautiously made my way down the corridor and toward the stairs to the infirmary without a hitch. I was on guard as I eased my head around the corner to check if it was safe. I tiptoed up to the door and was about to pull the door open when I remembered there was a powerful Warlock on the other side. "He might have booby trapped the door" I whispered to myself as I raised my hand to knock. I waited anxiously for a couple of seconds as footsteps sounded and the door opened.

"Is everything alright?" Magnus asked narrowing his eyes.

"You mean besides the fact the Institute is overrun with demons, Clary's facing down Valentine and my dad's pack has been decimated? Yes everything's fine" I replied before I could stop myself. "I only need to grab my crossbow and then I'll be leaving, I'm not here to stick my nose into whatever's causing the flashes of colour shooting under the door".

Magnus's eyes sparked for a second before he stood aside and let me in. "Do try to be quiet, Alexander is asleep" he said moving past me towards Alec's bed.

"How is he?" I asked spying my crossbow propped up against the counter.

"Much better" Magnus replied "but he still has a long way to go".

"Thank you for helping him" I said turning to face the Warlock.

"As if I could refuse to help someone this attractive" Magnus replied looking down at Alec's peaceful face.

"Ahem, well I'd best be going" I coughed awkwardly and headed for the door.

"I'd use a Soundless rune if you want to get back to Clary without being spotted" Magnus said looking up. "Valentine's men are combing the building".

"Okay, thanks" I replied pulling out my stele and tugging up the hem of my jeans. A few quick lines and the rune was complete. "Stay safe" I said heading out the door.

I made my way back to the library and grew concerned when I could hear the sound of fighting. I knocked an arrow, a regular one, and eased my head around the door. I could see Jace and Valentine trading blows. I frantically searched for Clary and saw her motionless near the low table in front of the couch. I fought back tears but knew deep down she was alive so I turned my attention to the duelling Shadowhunters. I raised my crossbow and took aim at Valentine. I pulled the trigger and the bolt skimmed over Jace and was headed straight for Valentine's forehead. It would have hit had he not deflected it with the hilt of his sword. He knocked Jace aside and our eyes met. There was nothing but evil in his eyes and I knew that if he won the world would be destroyed.

"Have another you fucking asshole!" I shouted loading and firing another bolt. It missed by a few dozen inches and Valentine stepped towards me, a feral grin on his face.

Jace staggered to his feet and placed himself between us. "What are you doing? You are no match for him".

"Who is this Jonathan?" Valentine asked, halting his advance. "Another friend ready to die for a hopeless cause?" he smirked and looked back at me. His eyes went wide for a second "Fiona?"

"My name is Stella Garroway you bastard!" I yelled back putting my crossbow down, I'd run out of normal bolts. I pulled out my seraph blades and crossed them in front of me. "Fiona was my mother and you killed her!"

"Fiona withheld the location of the Cup" Valentine replied raising his sword as Jace started attacking again.

"She didn't know where it was! You murdered my parents in cold blood and I'll make you pay for that!" I seethed. I ran forwards and started attacking Valentine's back.

He was definitely a better swordsman than me. Jace was right in saying I was no match. A flick from Valentine's left hand sent me flying across a table causing me to crash into a glass display cabinet. I could feel blood dripping down my arm and I had to blink furiously as the warm liquid dribbled down my forehead into my eyes.

I bared my teeth the way my dad did when he was angry "fucking bastard!" I charged forwards as a crash from outside the library brought everybody in the room to a halt.

We all looked at the door and my heart skipped a beat when my dad stepped through covered in blood. I quickly put one seraph blade away and ran up the stairs to wrap my arms around him.

"Dad! Are you okay?" I asked taking the torn clothes and the dark stains underneath bright new ones.

"I'm fine, it's not mine" Dad replied kissing the top of my head before taking in the scene in front of him.

Clary was moving to a sitting position, tucking something into her jacket. Jace was on guard a few feet from Valentine. Valentine raised his eyebrows and took a step forwards.

"Who's is it then Lucian?" Valentine asked coolly.

"Pangborn's" Dad replied stepping in front of me. "Although I didn't kill him the way you're thinking I did" he pulled out a long thin dagger from his pocket. "This is what finished him".

Valentine's eyes narrowed and he clenched his jaw.

"You handed me this seventeen years ago and told me end my life with it" Dad said gripping the handle tightly. "I nearly did" he looked down at me "but she needed me so I've held onto it hoping to end your life with instead".

"How noble" Valentine replied twirling his sword in front of him before rushing forwards. "It's a shame she's going to see you die in front of her" Valentine hissed forcing Dad away from me.

I dodged Valentine's arm and fled down the steps towards Clary. "Are you okay?" I asked picking her up before wiping the blood off my face.

She was about to reply when the sound of clashing metal rang out. I whipped my head around to see Valentine had struck at Dad, who'd met his blow with an ear-splitting parry. They moved across the room in a blur of feints and slashes.

"They're going to kill each other!" Clary whispered frantically.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from the fight if I tried. I watched as Dad slipped through Valentine's guard and caught him across the shoulder. Blood sheeted down his chest and he started laughing.

"A true hit, I hardly thought you had it in you Lucian" he crowed.

"Fuck you!" I yelled before I could stop myself.

Dad looked around and Valentine took his chance. I watched in disbelief as Valentine moved forwards and drove his sword into Dad's chest. I screamed as Dad collapsed and I started forwards, drawing my other seraph blade only to be stopped by Jace.

"Don't" he said.

"Fuck off out the way, and let me kill the bastard!" I cursed through my teeth as tears flowed unchecked down my cheeks. "He's trying to kill my dad! Do you understand that? My DAD!" I shoved at Jace and a strange expression passed across his face.

"Wait!" we all looked around as Clary's voice rang out clearly.

She was standing in front of the portal with the Mortal Cup in her hand. "Stop it or I'll drop it" she said putting her hand into the portal.

"You don't want to do that" Valentine said stepping away from my dad and moving towards Clary. "As your father, I'm begging you" he thrust his hand into the portal and tried to grab the Cup.

"If you'd been a real dad, you'd know me well enough to imagine where my deepest thoughts are taking it" Clary replied. "You don't know the first thing about me, you're not my dad".

With Jace distracted by the commotion in front of the portal I took the opportunity to jump around him and ran to where Dad was laying on the marble floor. I pressed my hand to the wound and fresh tears fell as the blood flowed over my hand and added to the growing pool around him.

"Dad! Please don't die!" I whispered furiously tearing off a piece of Dad's shirt and pressing it firmly to the wound.

Dad moaned and opened his eyes a little. "As long as you…keep doing what…y-you're doing I'll be okay…in a few minutes" he croaked. "Remember the werewolf healing thing?"

I smiled and looked up to see Clary hand the Cup to Valentine.

"Thank you Clary, without this Cup we are lost" Valentine said cradling the Cup in his hands.

"Not we…you!" Clary replied harshly before kicking Valentine in the chest, sending him into the portal. A minute of reprieve was all we were given before Valentine's hands burst back through the portal and latched onto Clary.

Jace dove forwards and grabbed her hand. "Here" he said handing Clary his stele.

Clary thrust the stele into the portal and it froze over. Suddenly there was an explosion and a shockwave flung Jace and Clary back into the steps.

"What happened?" Dad asked placing his hand on mine.

"The portal froze over and exploded" I replied helping him to sit up.

"Is Jocelyn alright?" Dad asked suddenly frantic.

"Calm down, and hold onto that rag" I replied getting to my feet. I put my seraph blades away and made my way over to the couch. Aunty Joss was still laying there the same as she was when we'd first seen her, only now she was covered in a light layer of snow. I looked back at my dad to see him watching me very intently. "She's fine" I called before looking for Clary and Jace. They were face down on the steps and weren't moving. I dashed over and nudge Clary's shoulder. "Clary!?"

They slowly raised their heads and gazed blearily at the scene in front of them.

"Valentine?" Jace asked.

"Gone" I replied tugging him to his feet.

"Mum? Luke?" Clary asked as I turned to help her.

"Aunty Joss is fine and Dad is on the mend" I replied.

A sound at the library door made me turn around. Simon was standing there with Isabelle supported on his left. They looked as though they'd been to Hell and back.

"Simon!" I exclaimed dashing up the stairs. "What happened?"

"Isabelle kicking demon butt is what happened" Simon replied.

"Simon helped" Isabelle added. "What happened here?"

"Valentine happened" I replied looking back down the stairs. Dad had made his way over to Aunty Joss with Clary's help and Jace was disassembling the summoning device I had only just noticed. "He destroyed the portal as he left, but we all survived".

"I'm going to need to have a good excuse to tell my mum when I get home" Simon said with a smile.

"Why?" I asked.

"I'm hardly going to tell her the truth about what's happened in the last week now am I?"

"No, I suppose not" I replied stepping aside as Dad came up the stairs with Aunty Joss in his arms.

"Let's get out of here" he said nodding to Simon and Isabelle.

"Is Alec okay?" Isabelle asked.

"Yep, he was asleep when I last saw him" I replied. "I'm sure Magnus would let you in now" I smiled as Isabelle detached herself from Simon and headed off to the infirmary with Jace close behind.

"Come on girls" Dad said making his way out of the library.

"See you soon Simon" we said taking it in turns to hug our friend.

We buckled Aunty Joss into the passenger seat and Clary and I climbed onto the tray of the truck.

"Are you going to be safe up there?" Dad asked easing himself into the drivers seat.

"As long as you go the speed limit we'll be fine" Clary replied sitting down.

I joined her and Dad pulled away from the curb. I wondered how the rest of the pack were and sent a silent prayer out for their safety. "You know if we hadn't gone to Pandemonium for your birthday none of this would have happened" I said as we cruised down the main street.

"I know" Clary replied. "We'd never know about demons and we wouldn't be trainee Shadowhunters, and we wouldn't have made new friends like we have".

"Hey I was thinking about the whole _parabatai_ thing Jace and Alec have got going on and I was wondering if that was something we'd be able to do?" I said looking at Clary.

"Would we be able too?" Clary asked.

"I don't know but if we can would you be my _parabatai_?"

"Sure" Clary replied with a smile.

-x-

**A/N: **final chapter is done, and so the City of Bones is complete. How did you guys like it? I'd love to hear your thoughts, good, bad or otherwise. The next instalment of this story, the City of Ashes, will now go into it's planning stage, so keep a weather eye out for that.

Until next time.

May the Angel watch over you!


	10. Valentine's Arrow

**City Of Ashes**

**Valentine's Arrow**

"Hey Church! Is anyone home?" I kneeled down to scratch the Persian's stomach.

"Meow" came the reply as Church wiggled out from under my hand. He got to his feet and headed off down the hall.

"Demented cat" I chuckled as I followed him. I was glad to see Church had escaped Valentine's attack unscathed. It had been almost two weeks since the man who'd murdered my parents had shown up at the New York Institute and begun causing havoc. I thought back to how useless my archery skills had been and how woefully untrained I was. I also hoped Alec wasn't going to have any lasting effects of his demon attack, so he could continue my training. I wanted to be able to hold my own the next time I met Valentine.

"Meow" Church called rubbing himself against my leg.

I looked around and found the cat had led me to the infirmary. I bent down and scratched behind Church's ears "thanks kitty!"

Church waddled off down another hallway and I approached the door. I eased it open to find Alec placing a set of crutches against the wall.

"Oh, hey Stella" Alec said as I shut the door behind me.

"How are you feeling?" I asked walking over.

"I've felt better" Alec replied with a half-smile.

"Did Izzy or Jace tell you what happened after you nearly died?" I asked perching on the edge of a bed.

"They said something about Magnus healing me while Valentine attacked the Institute" Alec replied.

"Yes, Magnus did a good job. I'd left my crossbow in here after we got the Cup and had to ask his permission to enter and retrieve it" I said. "I told him I wouldn't pry into the reasons for the multicoloured sparks shooting under the door".

"I don't recall any coloured sparks" Alec replied quickly, his cheeks beginning to turn red.

"Magnus is really hot for someone who's a few hundred years old, don't you think?" I said suddenly. I smiled a little as Alec's face turned as red as a tomato.

"I-I guess" he stuttered.

"So has he asked you out yet?" I asked in a quiet voice.

"What?" Alec blanched.

"Look, you're my friend. I don't care if you like guys, girls or toadstools, as long as you're happy".

Alec sunk onto the bed next to me. "If you must know, and please don't tell Jace or Izzy, I asked him on a d-date a few days ago".

I clapped my hands together "really?! How'd it go?"

"Not that well" Alec replied. "First I ended up being late, then I spilt a drink all over myself and had to borrow one of Magnus's shirts. Then the restaurant we went to had a thing against Shadowhunters, then we had to rescue a young werewolf from herself and after that..."

"Did you go back to his place?" I asked leaning forward slightly.

"Yes, and we..." Alec seemed to choke on his words, but I had a rough idea about what happened next.

"You had a make out session!"

"Well...yeah".

I wrapped my arms around Alec's shoulders "I'm so happy for you!"

"Thanks, please don't tell Jace though. Izzy will probably get the truth out of me in the next day or so, she's very persistent".

"I swear on the Angel, I'll not tell a soul". I replied releasing Alec and looking down at the runes on my wrists. "Hey, I was wondering if you still wanted me to hand in my homework on runes?"

"I totally forgot about that" Alec said sheepishly. "How far did you get?"

"I got up to the Voyance rune. The Codex said it goes on the back of the right hand and helps Shadowhunters to see through glamours. I was wondering if you'd draw it on me, because I'm not left handed and I don't want make a mess of it".

"Of course, hold out your hand" Alec replied, pulling a stele from his pocket.

A slight sting and the rune was complete. "So what are you guys planning to do today?" I asked tracing a finger over my new rune.

"Jace says there's a Dragonidae demon lurking in some subway tunnels and he wants to kill it" Alec replied returning his stele to his pocket.

"You sound like you'd rather wax your legs than go hunting" I said, wondering what the hell a Dragonidae demon looked like.

"Well, we're not going to let him go in his own" Alec said with a small smile. "I guess you could come along and observe how a professional hunt is executed, as long a your dad doesn't mind".

"He's practically living at the hospital right now, Aunty Joss still hasn't woken from her coma and Clary's staying with Simon tonight, so I have nowhere else to be" I replied. "What do I need to bring?"

…

"Are you still mad?" I asked.

Alec was leaning against the far wall of the elevator. He turned to me and glared "No! I'm not mad".

"Yes you are" I retorted.

"Does anyone else feel like they just went ten rounds with Muhammad Ali?" Stella asked gingerly rubbing her ribs.

"Who?" Alec and I asked at the same time.

"Jeez you guys do live in the dark when it comes to mundane history" Stella replied. "He was only the best boxer, like, ever!" she looked around at us and appeared genuinely mystified that we had no idea who she was talking about.

"I am not mad, Jace" Alec wasn't going to let me get away from our disagreement. "Just because you said dragon demons were extinct..."

"I said mostly extinct" I shot back.

"Mostly extinct" Alec's voice trembled with suppressed rage "is NOT EXTINCT ENOUGH!"

"Hey, calm down" Stella said taking hold of Alec's outstretched arm. "Yelling about it isn't going make them any less extinct, you know".

"I'll just have them change the entry in the demonology textbook from 'almost extinct' to 'not extinct enough for Alec. He prefers his monsters really, really extinct'. Will that make you happy?" I retorted.

"Boy, boys" Izzy said, after she'd finished examining herself in the mirrored wall. "Listen to Stella; don't fight". She turned around to face us with a bright smile on her face "all right, so it was a little more action than we were expecting, but I thought it was fun".

"It was certainly an eye opener for me" Stella agreed rubbing her ribs again. "I hope Dad doesn't find out I nearly died...again" she looked thoughtful.

I remembered back a few weeks to when we went to the Hotel Dumort to rescue her and Clary's mundane friend, Sigbert or whatever his name is. Stella's dad just so happened to be the leader of the local werewolf pack and I'd seen the way he looked at her. There was nothing on this earth that would stand in his way if Stella got seriously hurt.

Alec looked at his sister and shook his head. "How do you manage to never get mud on you?"

"I'm pure at heart" Izzy replied "it repels the dirt".

I snorted so loud Izzy turned around with a frown. I wiggled my grubby fingers in her direction "filthy inside and out". She was about to reply when the elevator screeched to a halt.

"Time to get this damn thing fixed" she said as she yanked the door open and stepped into the entrance hall.

…

"Jeez I need a shower" I groaned as I peeled off my jacket and hung it on a peg next to Alec's.

"I wish Mum was here to cook us something" Izzy said pulling the pins out of her hair.

"Is she good? I asked unstrapping my weapons belt and stepping out of my filth-caked boots.

"Better that she isn't" Jace replied removing his weapons belt as he spoke. "She'd already be shrieking about the rugs".

"You're right about that" said a cool voice from behind us.

I turned around to find a severe looking woman standing in the doorway. She wore a stiff black travelling suit and her black hair was drawn down her back in a long braid. Her ice-blue eyes swept over the four of us, and I suddenly felt a jolt of fear.

"Mum!" Izzy ran over and embraced the woman.

Alec got to his feet and joined his sister, trying to hide his limp. Jace seemed to be frozen midway through removing his weapons belt, and I stood awkwardly next to him.

"Where's Dad?" Izzy asked stepping away from her mother. "And Max?"

"Max is in his room. And your father, unfortunately, is still in Alicante" Mrs. Lightwood replied. "There was some business there that required his attention".

"Is something wrong?" Alec asked.

"I could ask you that" replied his mother. "Are you limping?"

"We had a run-in with a Dragonidae demon in the subway tunnels" Izzy said quickly "it was nothing".

"Really? And who is this?' Mrs. Lightwood asked pointing to me.

"Sorry. I'm Estelle Garroway" I replied.

"You look somewhat familiar" Mrs Lightwood mused.

"My parents were Mark and Fiona Roseivy, I was adopted by their friend, Lucian Graymark...though he's now changed his name to Luke Garroway".

Mrs Lightwood's eyes went wide for a moment before she regained her composure. "Pleasure to meet you Estelle, but I need to speak to my children privately. I hope you understand".

"Um, sure" I replied picking up my boots and weapons belt. "Alec, I'll give you my homework later".

"Okay" Alec replied with a small smile.

As I headed up the stairs, a small boy was headed in the opposite direction. He had a mop of black hair and was wearing clothes that looked to be a size too big. He looked up and stopped mid-step.

"Who are you?" he asked pushing his glasses up his nose.

"Stella Garroway, or Stella Roseivy if you want my Shadowhunter name" I replied, realising this kid must be related to Alec and Izzy.

"You're a Shadowhunter! Really?!" he asked. "Do you have runes? Can I see them?"

"Sure" I replied holding my arms out and turning them around.

"Wow! I'm Max by the way" he said pushing his glasses back up his nose again. "Do you know where my mum's gone? I heard the elevator and now she's disappeared".

"She talking to Alec, Izzy and Jace in that room over there" I said pointing to the entrance hall.

"Cool, thanks" Max said bounding towards the door.

I shook my head and continued up the stairs to my room. As I shut my bathroom door, I wondered why Jace had acted the way he did. He'd frozen with a half-formed smile on his face when Mrs Lightwood had looked at him. Maybe she_ was_ mad about the carpets? We did make quite a mess; tracking dirt and mud among other things.

I dumped my clothes on the bathroom floor and turned the taps. Once the steam had filled the room I ducked under the water and started scrubbing madly.

…

"Jace? Are you awake?" Alec asked rapping on his door.

"Are you alive?" I asked shoving my brother out of the way. Since Mum and Jace had had their 'talk', Jace had refused to talk to anyone.

"Izzy, of course he's alive" Alec replied repressing a sigh.

"Then why isn't he answering the damn door" I gave the door a hard kick.

"Why don't you use the doorknob?" Alec said reaching for it.

The door swung open and Alec and I made our way into Jace's room. It was a mess! There were clothes pulled out of drawers and tossed over chairs. Everywhere I looked all I could see was more destruction.

"What the hell happened?" Alec muttered as he made his way to Jace's bedside cabinet. He rummaged around for a moment before he froze.

"What's wrong?" I asked joining him.

Alec held up a stele. Jace's stele that he always took with him wherever he went. "What happened between Jace and Mum?"

"Do you think Stella heard him leave?" I asked.

"Just because their rooms are in the same hall, doesn't mean she heard anything" Alec replied replacing the stele in the drawer. "There's no harm in asking though" he added quickly.

…

I was sitting at my desk with a hot cup of coffee when I heard a knock on my door. I got up and padded across the room to answer it. I was surprised to find Alec and Izzy standing in front of me with concerned expressions on their faces.

"What's up?" I asked stepping to the side.

"Have you seen Jace?" Izzy asked pushing past me and throwing herself on my small lounge.

"What? No, not since your mum said she wanted to talk to you in private" I closed the door behind Alec. "Why do you ask?"

"He's not in his room" Alec replied seating himself on my chair. "His room looks like a hurricane has gone through it and his stele was in a drawer".

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"He never goes anywhere without his stele" Alec continued. "This is unusual and...well it's concerning".

"Do you have any idea where he'd go, if he wanted to get away from the Institute?" I asked, wracking my brain for any ideas.

"No" Izzy replied thickly. "Do you think Clary might?"

"I don't know" I replied padding over to my desk to retrieve my cell phone. "Let's call her and find out".

-x-

A/N: Greetings! I'm back with my take on the City of Ashes this time. Feel free to tell me what you think. Good, bad or otherwise :)

May the Angel watch over you!


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